Someday - A RWBY AU Story
by vulcanshammer3
Summary: Set during the Fall of Beacon where the team stays together, we follow Alex and his view on the fall and rise of Beacon, his team and family taken from him, how will he adjust to life with his new team? Eventual Bumbleby and White Rose
1. Chapter 1 - The Fall

It's been months since the attempted fall of Beacon. Scars still run deep, even for those that weren't a part of the catastrophe, those watching at home feeling nothing but grief watching on the news as people are torn apart by the Grimm, but still we endured. After a seemingly endless time of just fighting and praying, we won. The hordes of Grimm all but disappeared and the streets of Vale were empty. The shops eventually opened again and life continued on as if nothing happened, but we all know what's really going through our minds: How long until it happens again? But, until then, we maintain the façade that everything is ok.

For Alex though, life stood still for him. That day, he lost not only his team, but his family. He was so focused on doing what he was trained to do that he wasn't there to protect his family, his friends from the Grimm.

He tore through the town, his semblance and great sword dancing in unison as he cut though Beowulf after Beowulf. He managed to make his way to the residential district of Vale, cut and bruised and out of breath, his head aching and body about to give out. The sight that greeted him shocked him down to his core and filled him with fright: The houses on fire, or worse, with Grimm stalking around the interiors. Without thinking, he brought his gloved hand to his mouth and began to yell.

"ADA? Where are you?!" He cried, his voice echoing down the street. the Grimm not even paying attention to him as they savor their quarry. Despite the screaming in his limbs, he pushed himself down the road until he came across a small house, warm and cozy once, now just a shallow husk brought on by this dark day. The house stood in squalor, the walls either crumbling or about to give, the threshold that he crossed countless times as long as he could remember, now almost non-existent. The lifelong home's windows blown out, revealing clearly the large Beowulf filling the living room.

His blood ran cold when the Beowulf turned to face him, and in his jaws was a plush teddy bear, pink with ramshackle stitching that barely held together through the grace of the two brothers, and nothing more. Ada never let that bear go, it was her safety net when Alex wasn't there. Is Great Sword jumped to life, pouring fire dust into its massive cleaver shaped blade, it's fire dwarfed only by his unending rage. His almond colored eyes staring down the cursed creature as if it could feel fear; then he dove in with a mighty roar that didn't sound much more human than the Grimm. Before all goes black, his last image is of little ADA smiling up at him before he left for beacon, making him promise to call as often as he could. No matter how many nights were spend on the call, now it felt like an eternity of missed opportunities.

-The next day-

Alex awoke in a cloud of black smoke, all around him were corpses of Grimm not completely dissolved yet, but not another human soul could be seen. Not one tiny voice asking him about his weapon, not authoritative voices complaining about the fierce intensity of his fighting style, claiming that it needed refining even though it felt natural. All was silent.

Even when his eyes did open, there was not Grimm Pack tearing through the houses, not hostile Atlas bots, just silence. Until at least an airship blew overhead, Atlas of course, blasting out orders to civilians and the wounded for help. He stood from his carnage, looking on it quickly lest he be taken by rage again before accepting that his house is empty, that his family is gone. The voice told them to head to the town center to receive help; there Atlas will mend the wounded and house those that had nowhere to go. It had sounded ideal for him.

The walk under the unforgiving sun was long, but uneventful; maybe they had managed to push them back. Maybe they fixed the Atlas bots glitch and turned the tides; maybe the White Fang got the stupid out of their heads and fought the good fight. Who knows, but there is still a group that needed his attention. During the fight he was so focused on his family, he had abandoned his team, and even if they did not forgive him, he needed to see if they were okay.

When he reached the center, it was calm. Families huddled together in fear, hospital tents full to capacity with the unfortunate civilians that didn't make it out unscathed. It was at this moment he remembered the scroll Beacon forced him to carry at all times. Pulling it out of his red Trench Coat and powering it back on at a nearby charging station, he turned to his team's status screen, and that familiar chill ran down his spine.

His teammate's faces greyed out and their aura levels completely empty. As far as this scroll shown, they were long gone, and he wasn't there for them. If not for the next event, he'd have broken right then, but a light tug on his shoulder grabbed his attention.

Turning to his left, he was greeted by a large pair of silver eyes kept behind a messy bob cut. This girl had a long cloak and was tiny, but you remember her form the orientation ceremony, miss Ruby Rose. Scythe Wielder and bane of Cookies. Alex's team and hers never went on mission together, but her team was the talk of the town. Right now she looked like a scared child, much like Ada.

"Excuse me…I'm trying to find someone and I can't seem to track them down, your tall, would you mind…helping…me?" She asked before looking down. She looked on the verge of tears, and the big brother in him couldn't keep his heart from breaking, Alex had to help.

"Who? What do they look like?" Alex says, his deep voice already breaking from last night's berserker rage, talking hurt and the emotions kept inside hurt worse, but he was needed.

"My sister: Yang! She's almost as tall as you and has REALLY long blonde hair. Oh, and she's real pretty too!" The name rings a bell in Alex's head, and the picture snaps into view. He knew who to look for, but not where to start. Looking around for someone in charge, it didn't take long to find someone who looked like they were from Atlas, however Ruby beats him to the punch.

"Weiss! I found help!" Ruby cheers, jumping up and down to get her attention.

The girl in question rounds about and stares directly at Alex, taking him in while he does the same. This girl, Weiss Schnee, also famous around the school, not just for being Ruby's teammate, but for her name and remarkable beauty. After a short second, she shakes her head, obviously not thrilled with what Ruby found and walks over.

"You dolt! Why would you grab another student? He's probably just as lost as we are!" She scolds Ruby almost immediately and Ruby shrinks. Her index fingers tap together as she recoils under the scrutiny and Alex feels the need to speak up.

"She came to me for a different point of view since your both so…" He paused, not wanting to offend anyone. Not today. "…short." Fuck it.

"How rude!" Weiss stomps and is visibly fuming at the poke at her short stature, but Alex is already moving on.

"This way." He says simply and the others followed. There was some truth to what Ruby said, most of her problem was being so short, Alex spotted Yang during Weiss' tirade and led them through the crowd. People instinctively got out of Alex's way, standing at six foot five with a blood red coat and a great sword demands a certain demeanor in people that don't know him well. Before long, their stood at the front of a tent, and the scene inside is dismal to say the least, and it hits Ruby hard.

Yang, tall, blonde and gorgeous laying on the bed still knocked out with her right arm barely hanging on by sinew and gore. The doctor working his magic to make the next part easy for everyone but its obvious, she's going to lose that arm, don't have to be a genius to know that much. The light faded from her hair a bit and if her eyes opened, it's pretty much certain that it'd be the same for her purple orbs of happiness.

Next to her bed, fretting about everything and visibly uncomfortable, maybe from the stab wound to the gut who knows; was a Raven haired girl with wide amber eyes, currently filled with tears staring down at Yang, Blake Belladonna, ever the stoic one was not holding it together well; her hands cupping Yang's remaining one and oblivious to the new company.

This wasn't his moment, or his family, so Alex decided this was the best time to leave.

"Ruby, im guessing this is what you're looking for, maybe you can help me real quick?" He said, short sweet and to the point, especially since his throat still burned.

"Oh yeah, sure, by the way, what's your name first?" She chuckled, rubbing the back of your head, Weiss barely jumping on her for her mistake. Hopefully understanding that this wasn't the time or place.

"Alex. I was wondering if you've seen this little girl?" He says holding out his scroll. On it is a picture of his little sister Ada, smiling and framed by the sunflowers that she loved so much, in the back you can faintly see the beginnings of the emerald forest. There was a bit dangerous, but she had him. She was safe then. Now…

"Uh, yeah." She said, looking incredibly uncomfortable at this point, and pulling her hood over her head. Weiss leans in and covers her mouth as her eyes dance back and forth to the scroll and Alex's face. By now, Blake has noticed the company and walked over to see the situation.

"How do you know her?" Blake says, face not changing, but the level of caution could be easily heard.

"She's my little sister, our house was overrun with Grimm and I'm hoping she found safety here." Alex says. To bolster his argument, he pulled up a picture of him and Ada together in the same sunflowers, her sitting on his shoulders with an ecstatic look on her face. They went there that day to pick some new sunflowers for Ada and wound up just running around all day; didn't pick a single flower. Upon seeing the picture, Ruby's eyes start running a river of tears and she's shaking while retreating into Weiss' shoulder.

"I'm sorry Alex, but we couldn't get to her in time." Blake said, apology marring those amber eyes of hers as she stares into Alex's Hazel eyes, now growing dark.

"What do you mean?" Every word out of his mouth now a struggle, red lining his vision again; but he must maintain control. They aren't the enemy.

"She was trying to outrun a patrol of Atlas machines but she got trapped on one of the roads. We managed to destroy most of the machines, but by then they- " Ruby started and she chokes up, finding it hard to finish. Alex takes a deep breath and places a hand on her shoulder, causing her to jump. When her nervous eyes finally meet his, he keeps his face as calm as he can and gives her his big brother smile.

"I'm thankful that you at least tried, that's all anyone can do. Thank you for telling me." He said choking up slightly. It confirmed his deepest fears, but also put to rest some of how he felt. Yes she was gone, but knowing was completely different than not being certain. He took another stabilizing breath before looking to her one more time, his face serious again.

"How can I help?"


	2. Chapter 2 - A New Day

The following month went by in a blur. Yang awoke the very next day, and understandably freaked out about her arm. Blake filled everyone in about what had happened, from the Vytal tournament to their skirmish with Adam. How Yang jumped in to save a pinned Blake only to have her arm partially severed and amputated by the doctor. How Ruby and Weiss showed up just as Adam was ranting about his "love" for Blake and turned the tides. They tried to gloss over that Ruby personally cut him in half for what he did to her sister, it must be hard for such a young girl to not only witness but to enact such violence on someone else.

Yang was not dealing well, her father Taiyang and Uncle Qrow trying their best to help but were also having their hands full with others; it was all hands on deck trying to keep the growing crowd calm as well as killing the remnants of the Grimm, so it all fell to Blake, Weiss, Ruby, and because he wanted to help, Alex.

"What are you doing here anyway?" Yang said, finally breaking the silence that filled the room since she awoke and had to find out she had been maimed. Ruby and the others were out helping the survivors, so Alex volunteered to keep an eye on her and help anyway she needed. She has been…less than cheerful at hearing it but never told him to leave.

"Just here to help, I never found my team and Ruby picked me from a crowd. Just making myself useful for now I guess." His answer accompanied a shrug as he sat back in his chair next to Yang's bed. They were still in the tent, but the doctor swore that until she could walk on her own without the pain medications, she could stay there. Alex filled his time with killing himself internally looking through pictures on his scroll of little Ada and himself, also pictures of his teams and their missions. He was always big on pictures since his memory was always spotty, but now it just opened wounds that needed to stay closed until everything blew over.

"And what about after? You just gonna leave?" Yang had said, and at the same time, the temperature in the tent seemed to rise a bit. Alex glanced up at her and noticed her eyes took on a red hue and his eyes narrowed.

"I don't know. I have no plans that I'm aware of, so as long as people need me, that's where I'll be. If that takes me from you guys, it won't be my choice." This answer seemed enough as Yang blinked away the red from her eyes and seemed to soften up a bit. Her shoulders relaxed and she let out a breath.

"I just worry what will happen with Ruby when you do. She's grown used to having you as part of the 'team' and she needs all the help she can get. I don't know what she'll do if you just disappear." Finally opening up, she said more words just now than in the past week. Progress.

"As long as she can ask for help, I'll be here. I've got nowhere else to be and if it helps her at all, I'll do whatever is needed."

"What about your family? Your friends?"

"…Gone."

"…I'm sorry, I didn't know." She starts to ball up the sheets in her fist and the start of tears hits her balled fist.

"It's not your fault, you couldn't have known. It was just a harmless question." Alex says, patting her on her shoulder. She tenses for a second before nodding. She announces that she's going to get a bit of sleep and rolls over. Not wanting to be creepy, Alex takes the opportunity to stretch his legs. His walk only took him outside the door, but he'd been sitting there killing himself for the past few hours, keeping a seemingly mute girl company.

But as harmless as her question was, it put salt into old wounds. Pocketing his scroll, he crouched down in front of the door and silently sobbed to himself.

As his parent's taught him when he was little, don't let them see you cry, otherwise they won't rely on you. And if you can't be relied on, you'll be left behind. That's what the pack does.

-The next month-

Yang is finally out of bed and Blake won't leave her alone, Ruby is busier than ever and Weiss won't let her forget it; but not because of a mission, not some fearsome Grimm that needs planning to take down, but because Beacon re-opens finally. As they walk the new grass that lines the castle grounds, and listen to the empty sound echoing off the walls, the nostalgia hurts; of a time where all they had to worry about was if Glynda was going to snap one of these days, or if Ozpin really did just like torturing first years by tossing them off a cliff into Grimm infested terrain.

There was to be a new ceremony to have a new year welcomed as well as re-sort the teams as needed. The ceremony was held in silence as old teams had replacements picked from those still living, and outliers were put to existing teams to keep them from being left alone. Why they didn't just create new teams from the outliers is anyone's guess, but who was going to complain to a man covered in burns? Yes, Ozpin survived his fight with Cinder, he ended her life by his own hand, but did not leave unscathed. Team's RWBY and JNPR stayed the same; however RWBY was excited to welcome their new recruit: Alex, who stood silent through the whole ceremony, and walked away as soon as they were told they could.

The walls filling with students again trying to find their dorms, and all Alex wanted was to be alone. Nobody said anything about the fallen teams and they were to be okay with this change. He was as far from it as possible.

His team's faces were starting to blur in his memory, and his pictures did little to help. He was starting to not recognize them anymore and that terrified him. He didn't want to forget them, not their times together either. But at the same time, Team RWBY would need him and he had to be strong, even if he had to act as if he were made of stone. Unbreakable.

During his wanderings, he almost ran into the grey haired headmaster head on, barely dodging.

"Sorry sir, I wasn't minding my surroundings…" Alex said bowing his head. He stood head and shoulders over the headmaster, but this was a man demanding of respect, he faced the war head on with his students and helped pull them out of it somewhat intact. There stood Professor Ozpin, leaning more heavily on his cane than before but still sporting that same mug, and with a push of his glasses closer to the top of his nose, he cleared his throat.

"No worries, but I have to ask: what can keep you so out of sorts?" His tone sounded kind, but his delivery belied his concern. He truly did love his students.

"Nothing." With that, Alex tried to walk away, but Ozpin's words stopped him short.

"We may seem to be moving on, but the wounds will not be forgotten. I'm sorry for your loss and I cant begin to imagine they pain you're going through, but just know that you're not alone in this. It may not be your team that you came here with, but they may just grow to be more than you had hoped." And as if to cap off his speech, he took a sip from his mug and turned on his heel and walked away. Alex stood there for a second, pondering what he was just told and accepted it.

Yes, he felt pain for the team that he had abandoned, and for that he could never forgive himself, but he should at least give them a chance. Maybe they'll help fill the void.

-Later, in Team RWBYs dorm-

Alex walks in and immediately has an icy finger thrust in his face, it's owner staring him down with sapphire eyes.

"Just where have you been? We've been waiting on you to have a team meeting, and we kind of need the team to have that?" Weiss' voice cuts through any thoughts Alex has and drags him back to reality. All four members of team RWBY stand in front of him, watching Weiss interrogate him, some with arms crossed and Ruby sitting in her bed reading from a comic, ruby colored headphones covering her ears and music barely heard out of them filling the awkward silence.

"I was talking to the headmaster about an issue, it's been resolved." He says, going cross-eyed while staring at Weiss' perfectly manicured nail inches from his nose. How did she reach that high anyway? Maybe it's the chair she stole from one of the desks to stand on. Who knows, really?

"Well now that you're here, we can get this underway…RUBY!" And with that Ruby is at attention after flinging her headphones behind the bed in a panic, but quickly recovers and stands in front of the team.

"Alex, in all honesty, this meeting was to discuss what to do about you. We've been a team for so long that it feels weird to suddenly change that dynamic, especially since we've already got our partners, but you're the outlier." Ruby gave the speech short and to the point, but Alex didn't feel any easier about it. The only thought going through his mind was simply: 'oh shit.'


	3. Chapter 3 - Team Bonding

**A/N: Thank you to those that read along and were waiting on chapter 3, here it is! This is my first fic so I appreciate any reviews and criticism. Thank you for reading and take care of yourselves, and each other.**

The team meeting went on into the early morning the next day, the girls doing most of the talking trying to figure out how Alex fit into their dynamic. It started with trying to figure out the bathroom situation (which never got resolved) and the sleeping arrangement. Alex wound up with a bed in the absolute center of the room all to himself while the other fashioned them into the bunk beds of old, but this time more secure (per Weiss' demands, for fear of her own demise by bed.). And lastly, when they get changed, if they are not in their bathroom, he will have to wait in the hall.

Admittedly the talk did take a turn when no one wanted to change partners, and for a bit Alex did feel a bit tossed aside, but it was okay; honestly, he felt he was more there as a guest than anything, since he didn't know this team that well. But it was agreed that he will instead assist their existing pairings. More importantly, they know little of him due to his withdrawn nature and short talking at all times; So, how better to get to know him than to have one on one times?

First off is Weiss, offering to go first if not to get it out of the way, but to actually show an attempt at team bonding. Alex was immediately bored out of his mind as her activity was simply sitting with tea and talking. Alex preferred to always be on the move, from one action to the other and this was a stark contrast to it. However, he would bear it to provide his new team with what they wanted.

"So, where are you from?" A sip of her tea, still steaming and the interview is underway. The alabaster tableware and cups shining with the orange glow of the sun above that shows through undisturbed from the patio that they set up on. The wrought iron chairs covered in expensive looking cushions that were very comfortable indeed. A short question later and she's sitting still, staring deeply into his eyes paying full attention; a very trained action on true display.

"Patch, I was born and raised on Patch and went to Signal as soon as possible. My turn, " Alex takes a sip of his tea as well, Earl Grey, a popular tea and a good choice when you don't know the other's taste. Alex could feel the effort being put forth, however, Weiss froze when he turned the tables to ask his own question. "Why Beacon? I know you could've gone to Atlas just on name alone and done just as well, so why Beacon so far from home?"

"That is exactly why though." She said donning a saddened expression, immediately corrected to the professional demeanor she started with. "I wanted to get away from how things were at home, and this seemed the best way to start. After Beacon did their tests, all of which I passed of course, Ozpin allowed me to attend Beacon. Of course my family was against it, but at the time that seemed to only propel me more towards this place." She looks around, soaking in the beautiful scenery with a smile on her face, small and polite. Alex sips from his tea again and motions with his hand to allow Weiss to ask her question.

"Why did you stay? You've probably got friends of your own to look after. Family, even. So why stay with this team?" She leans forward the more she speaks, nervous shaking of the leg shows this is an important question to her, and Alex takes a moment to think his answer over carefully.

"During the fall, I lost my team, and my family. During the chaos, I was found by you and Ruby and that's where we begin. I've got no one else that needs me, and to be completely honest, I'm waiting for you guys to not need me either." Alex says, his face dropping more and more as his honest thoughts escape his mouth. He feels bad, terrible even to be so cynical, but he still feels that his place is only a temporary Band-Aid for the team even after Ozpin's words earlier.

Weiss sits straight up, her face mixing between sadness and anger. His words stung, but he needed to be honest with her and, to a degree, she appreciated it, but it still hurt. After a tense moment, she lets out a breath and looks at him dead on.

"That's the dumbest thing I've heard." Alex chokes on his tea, and then she continues, "You're a part of our team. Yes, we don't know where you fit in yet, but we've tried to make you feel included. You're also to blame for keeping us out. I know we all have our demons that we have to face, times when we need to be alone, but yours is constant and we're trying to find a way past it. But we cannot, and will not do it without you. We need you, and we can tell you need us."

Alex has looked away at this point. Her words hit a soft point in his heart, reminding him of their attempts to welcome him, only for him to walk away from it. Time's where Ruby would want to talk about their oversized weapons only for him to promise to later and never keep to it. This sit down is the first time he's ever spent time with them not needing to do anything. The realization set down on his shoulders like a lead weight, making him set his cup down as the added weight of the dainty cup was too much. His sight was lined with a cold blue, his semblance kicking in again at the worst time, and he started to shake as if cold. From Weiss' point of view, he was breathing vapor as if it were winter outside right now.

"I'm going to be rude for a second and jump to my next question: what is your semblance?" Weiss asked, again quickly composing herself and trying to avoid staring at her teammate as his, for lack of a better word, colors seemed to take on a colder, wetter tone.

"After you, keeping it fair. Showing me would be easier for me to grasp if possible." Alex replied, taking calming breaths and his colors became more vibrant. Weiss smirked at his retort, showing he's still level headed even during times of possible stress. She stood and straightened out her snow white dress and pulled her Rapier from her side. With a beautiful twirl not unlike a ballet dancer, she stuck it into the ground and a large glyph containing her symbol, the white snowflake, appeared around them, spinning rapidly on the ground. When she removes the sword, the glyph disappears in a flurry of snowflakes fading into the air leaving behind a cool breeze. As she sits down, her smile has grown, and she seems very proud of her show.

"A Deals a deal, mine is Glyphs in varying use. I find myself to be a very effective support for our team and I look forward to how I can support you as well." She says, ending in a nod that makes her off-kilter ponytail bounce forward slightly before resting behind her again.

"Mine is not so fabulous though. It's ruled by my emotions, but in general my semblance manifests as the elements. When I'm mad, I can summon and manipulate fire. Same with ice when I'm sad, wind when I'm happy, etc. I'll show you, right now honestly I feel a little down so it should be ice that forms." Alex says. He holds his hand palm up, and within seconds, ice crystals combine in his hand, forming a not yet obvious object. Sun shining through the sculpture reflects on both of them as it finishes forming in his hand, clear as water and jagged as a snowflake, but the object that form was of Weiss' snowflake down to the last detail.

"It took forever to get this kind of control and my…parents," the colors dull a little more, ",had their hands full when I would throw a temper tantrum and set everything on fire." He finished with a nostalgic chuckle on his voice and half a smile as he remembers the singed walls and tattered curtains that at one point may have been very expensive, even his mother's singed nose and ears from when they first discovered this. He never really forgave himself even though she swore it wasn't his fault.

A cold touch to his hand draws him from his memories; Weiss' hand atop of his.

"I'm sorry to bring up anything painful, I just wanted to know." She actually looks apologetic, so Alex smiles and wills his colors back to normal.

"Its fine, if possible though, can we pick this up at a later time? I would like to do more than just sit here if you'd be interested." He offers, returning Weiss' hand and smiling back at her. She stands after finishing her cup and nods, together they walk off talking of random topics, but noticeably more comfortable together.

Later in that same day was Ruby. When Alex walked into their dorm, she was sitting on her bed giddy with excitement as the door finally opened. Before Alex could speak, a soft stoic voice was heard from Blake and Yang's side of the room.

"Please take her from here; she hasn't been able to sit still since you left with Weiss." Blake announced, not looking away from her book. Alex thinks her bow twitched, but is soon drawn from his wonder when he realized the perfect way to bond with Ruby.

"I know I've been…distant…whenever we talk about weapons, so let's fix that! Grab your stuff for maintenance; it's going to be a long night." Alex says, his smile growing at the same time as Ruby's. She squeals and uses her semblance to dash around the room. Not even a second later, her arms are full of assorted tools and oils and she announces she's ready to go. Alex could've sworn part of her supplies was a bag of cookies, but he's not one to judge.

"Not too late, li'l sis!" Yang yells peeking up from her side of Blake's bed. On Blake's bed, Blake was reading a book and Yang was playing on her phone as best she could, still being down an arm and not too used to it.

"Ugh! You sound like Dad!" Ruby says while rolling her eyes, but immediately perks up as she leads you out of the room. For the first time, Alex really took in what she looked like now that he didn't have to be in big brother mode.

First thing he noticed was her choice of fashion. Gothic style clothing always caught his eye, and this was no different. She had a black blouse overlayed with a corset (or was it built into the shirt, hard to tell with the black on black coloring.). Her hair, having grown about an inch in the past month covered her right eye and was in a messy looking bob that started black and ending in red highlights. Her pale skin and silver eyes a stark contrast to her look, and black stockings ending in red and black boots and combat skirt. She was walking with a skip to her step and humming a tune similar to red like roses, arms still full of her supplies and her beloved weapon strapped to her middle back.

Following her through the halls, Alex stayed silent, eyeing his sword, long since uncared for and in need of some TLC. Thankfully this meeting will have two uses.

The workshop was just like any other classroom in terms of dimensions and chalkboard, but instead of desks, it was workbenches complete with general tools and ammo loading stations for those that needed it.

Immediately they set to work. On one side Alex was working to dull his blade to repair the notches before sharpening and cleaning, Ruby hard at work creating rounds for her Crescent Rose. Almost ten minutes went by with neither of them speaking before Ruby started giggling seemingly to herself, but she got Alex's attention.

"Whats goin' on?" He said, stopping the belt sander to hear her properly. Ruby turned and wore that trademark smile as her face was covered in gunpowder splotches.

"Realized you brought me here for us to talk and learn about each other and bond, but nobody is saying anything. Kinda funny to me, if I'm being honest." Ruby replies, still giggling while expertly loading her cartridges.

"So, say something then. The problem can fix itself." Alex replied, still holding off on working and giving her his undivided attention.

"…Something." Ruby deadpanned, being met with an incredulous look on Alex's face that forced her giggling into full on laughter. Alex had been around Yang enough to know that was a Yang move and she's being a bad influence on little Ruby if this is the result.

Not willing to feed the joke anymore, Alex restarted his sander and got back to work. A presence joined him on his left and he glanced over to see Ruby watching him work. More accurately, she was eyeing his sword in awe.

"Got a question?" Alex said, being loud enough over the sander. Ruby looked at him but a moment before looking back at the sword.

"Why a great sword? And from what I see it doesn't turn into anything long range. I like the classics and all but it seems you're holding back." Ruby says her tone no longer cheerful but mostly on observation and finding ways to fix problems even Alex didn't know existed. Alex saved his reply for when the sanding was done and the blade was fully dulled.

"What did you have in mind then? If this is to be bonding, then let's make this something great together." A fire was lit inside Ruby as she jumped from her seat and ran to a chalkboard. All through the night they were drawing schematics for changes to Alex's sword, even giving it a name.

"It needs a name! It's an extension of you and is your pride and joy, so it obviously needs a name that you came up with!" The enthusiasm and shock from Ruby coming from Alex never naming his weapon. The schematic of his new weapon played off of not only his semblance, but of her mentor Qrow. Meaning his great sword now had a terrifying Scythe form that would feature a dust powered Assault rifle build into it for range.

"Considering how we'll be making this a reality, I think the name needs to symbolize both of us…"Alex pondered out loud, touching his chin while reflecting and showing off a nervous tick of his.

"Considering also that you'll be fighting with a scythe as well as your sword, and what that style looks like, it could also have a fancy name like a dance." Ruby chimed in, mimicking Alex's movements and earning a small smile from the tan giant.

Alex maintained this smile as he grabbed a bit of chalk and in big letters above the schematics, wrote out "Rose Bolero", immediately he felt self-conscious about it, but Ruby seemed over the moon. Her eyes (somehow) got even larger and her smile threatened to reach her ears as she gasped. The rest of their night/early morning was spent gathering supplies to actually re-invent his weapon until he decided they would do it first chance they got after some rest. Ruby seemed to deflate a bit after that, but the promise of doing it later stuck with her. For now, though; bed.

-The next morning-

"Time to wake up, Alex!" Was all he heard before his bed was flipped over, with him still inside it. The floor tasted just fine this morning, but he'd still prefer his coffee and maybe some pancakes. Who flipped him anyway? It's not like he's light by any means, so who would've-

"That doesn't mean sleep on the floor! It's my turn so up and at 'em!" Yang; of course it'd be Yang. Wait, that means she did it one handed. A twinge of fear soars up Alex's spine and he carefully considers just lying there, but decides against it as to not anger the blonde. Standing on still asleep legs, lilac eyes stare at him behind blond trusses, the now familiar friendly smile on full display, wearing her normal body armor jacket and skirt…thing.

"We're going to be doing something a lot more active so I hope you're ready." She announces, her hand resting on her hip.

"Can we get breakfast first?" Alex asks, as if on cue, both of their stomachs let out a room shaking rumble. The sound and force making Weiss speak up.

"Just go get breakfast and leave us to sleep in peace you brutes!" She yells and then buries her head under blankets and sheets and the mound stops moving. One last look to Yang is all that's needed to start the day.

After their hearty breakfast, they gather their weapons and proceed to the designated training area. One whole side was occupied by bleachers for those who want to watch the fighters, but other than that it was a large stage to host the many dances between trained fighters fighting it out to find out who is better. Yang strode to the center of the arena and basked in the LED lighting coming from the ceiling, a feeling of nostalgia emanating from her. Yang was thinking of days long gone by now, her practice fights against Pyrrha, her beatings given out happily to team CRDL, it all flowing back to her.

"You know, sometimes, I miss how things used to be; and not just for my arm." Yang suddenly speaks. As she talks, her remaining hand unconsciously rubs her stub, still sensitive but not hurting her all the time anymore.

"I miss being able to fight properly, more than anything, but I miss the faces we don't see anymore. The ones who couldn't make it, and the ones we couldn't save." She finally faces you, and as she speaks her eyes start to turn to a burning red.

"I never want to lose someone I care about again, and I want to be able to at least try to prevent it. That's why you're here." She starts to form a defensive posture. "Help me learn to fight through this, show me how much you care for the team by helping me through this."

Alex pauses for a second, and then starts to remove his jacket and sword, setting them aside for the time being. Yang wonders what he's thinking, before he gets into his own melee stance, a variation of muay thai taught to him by his father during his time at signal.

"I'll do all I can, Yang. Get ready!" Alex says before his vision fills with red and fire engulfs his fists forming burning gauntlets. Yang pauses for just a second before activating her Ember Celica, her weapon equipped arm held out in defense in front of her.

Alex ran at her, full force and semblance burning away before his fists, the gauntlets made of roaring flames that were also somehow solid. Hitting the Grimm with his hands like this usually left a charred hole in their bodies, but Yang should be alright. Sure enough she was able to deflect his blow, a wild haymaker aimed at her head, blocking it with her arm and wrapping her hand around said arm and up the shoulder. Sensing her moves, Alex drew his arms in just in time to block her powerful knee aiming at his core, and then they separated, both in their stances and staring each other down. However, Yang was smiling at him.

"Go ahead, give me all you got and stop holding back!" Yang announces before charging forward herself, her fist aiming directly for Alex; doesn't matter where it would hit, it would hurt. Seeing her coming dead at him, her eye's burning more fiercely than his own fire, he then jumped at her, aiming his knee at her oncoming fist and shielding it with fire. The world slowed at this instant, these two titans locking in a single moment of bliss at the intense fight they were having, her fist connecting and activating Ember Celica at the perfect time, and Alex's fire connected, emitting a loud explosion and blinding light that would leave a large crater in the floor, even by Yang's standards. The resulting clash knocked both of them back, clearing the arena by a long shot and embedding them deep into the walls. Yang was the first to recover, managing to pull her body from the wall, giggling the whole way and letting out a satisfying stretch and letting her back pop.

"Oh that was so much fun! You're not bad yourse-"She stops short when she sees that Alex hasn't moved. He sat against the wall, hands and knees free of their fiery padding and his head dropped to rest his chin on his chest and his hands loose on his sides. In a panic, she runs over to his and starts to shake his shoulder.

"Come on! You've gotta get up!" She almost screams, panic setting in quickly at the thought that she seriously hurt a friend. Before she could truly freak out though, his hand moves.

"Still here…"He says, pain obvious and he knew he was going to be sore come morning, but he was alright and focusing on calming her down. So he gave her a 'not dead yet' thumbs up that he borrowed from Weiss.

Cleaning up and passing around a joke or two, they went back to their dorm; a near death situation and a sparring match all they needed to become fast friends.


	4. Chapter 4 - The Missing Blake

Blake's turn never came. As Alex and Yang returned to the dorm, they found Ruby and Weiss hard at work on next month's homework, but Blake nowhere to be found. Her favorite book sitting on her pillow, obviously meant to get back to it, yet that seemed to be a long time ago.

"She said she was running a quick errand, but that was a few hours ago." Ruby said, jumping at the chance to get away from the homework. Alex remembered that he was falling behind too and to get back to it as soon as he can.

"What'd she have to do?" Yang spoke up, breaking Alex from his thoughts. She was walking back to the bunk and sat down when she reached it, picking up the book and hiding it in Blake's spot under the bed. Even Weiss was pulled from her work, feeling her team needed her complete attention more than her academics.

"I have a feeling we should go check her popular places in Vale." Alex spoke up from the door to the dorm. "I don't think she'd just up and disappear without at least giving us a trail to follow, just need to find it."

With that, they boarded the first airship to Vale to commence their search. They started at all the book stores they could pull up, but she wasn't there. Then the café that her and Sun hid out in so long ago, but no Blake. After trying parks, hospitals, CCT towers and just general shops asking for just a sight, they didn't get anything.

"I've got one idea." Yang said, an evil smirk filling her face as she started down random direction.

"Better than nothing I guess…" Weiss sighed, following behind the blonde brawler.

"I don't think so." Alex said, following the group.

-Later that day-

Saying that they were in danger was putting it lightly. Yang's direction brought them to the center of Junior's bar, heavy music burning Alex's ears, leery men staring at Weiss and Ruby, and Yang's hand full of what Junior prizes above all else, his family jewels. Oh, the Malachite twins were there too, just unconscious.

"I asked if you've seen her, and I know when you're lying!" She said, somehow louder than the music, and accenting her commands by tightening her fist a bit more and making Junior squeak. Alex, as the only male on this team, was visibly uncomfortable and to a degree, felt bad for the man.

"At this point, why would I tell you anything, Blondie?!" He yelled, and then his eyes seemed to open even more, going above his sunglasses. "Oh, that's why."

He would then go on to curse, loudly, making Alex cover Ruby's ears and glare at all the stares she was getting, and Weiss covering her own ears, apparently too refined for such language; and then he spilled everything he knew. Blake had been through with her own much more civil questions all related to the White Fang. She got her information, paid her tab and left. Peacefully, Junior was sure to make sure was perfectly clear. Yang got her copy of the information, and let the man's boys go from her vice grip and, in a completely psychotic turn, gave him the most innocent smile she could muster before walking out with a skip to her step. The other's followed, keeping a grip on their weapons in case the lecherous men in the crowd or Junior's goons got brave.

"Maybe a bit of warning next time, Yang. Where are we going?" Alex spoke up, catching up the Blonde and she pulled out her scroll.

"But, did you die?" She said, still wearing that innocent look as she flipped through her scroll. "This says she was supposed to go to an old warehouse, some big shot meeting taking place there." Her scroll replaced, they started heading there immediately, oddly enough near the harbor. Blake would've loved it here, at least the smell.

"I think it's this one!" Yang said, before popping open the door, the others rushing up behind her to try and stop her. The room inside was dark, but they could feel the eyes on them, dozens of them behind Grimm styled masks, then time stood still again.

The room was full of White Fang members, the room itself full to capacity which a glance at the wall sign marked 'capacity limit' said 144 people, but there had to be more than that in here. At the front of this room was a stage with impromptu lighting making it the attention in the dark. On said stage, was Blake, but also one other person. He had his sword pointed right at Blake and seemed to be in the middle of a rousing speech when they interrupted. It didn't take long for all hell to break loose, weapons drawn and working together, they moved into the crowd with one objective in mind: save Blake.

Team RWBY was in full form today, Yang tanking most of the hits for the smaller members who were summarily tearing through the group quite easily, but also gathering attention. Alex took the opportunity to charge the stage and challenge the leader, both of their swords meeting before the Leaders could land on Blake, defenseless as she was still bound. The leader recoiled and pointed the tip of his blade at Alex, a revolver pistol leading to a cleaver like blade that split off at the end to a serrated tip and hook at the back, getting hit with the blade would be a slow and painful bleed out.

"You dare intrude on White Fang business? This traitor must pay for her crimes against our fallen brother Adam!" He says loud enough to go above the fighting in the crowd. Alex could feel all eyes fall on him and his opponent.

"Don't know anything about that, don't care. Just here to help my friend." Alex replies simply, grabbing his sword in both hands and focusing on the blade. Before everyone's eyes, they see the blade become engulfed in fire, the heat enough to make the front of the crowd back away from fear of being burnt.

The flames from his sword served as the starting gun for their fight, blades clashing and flames dancing around the stage, Alex consciously keeping them away from Blake, the fight going either way, his sword almost finding it's mark as often as the leaders. His large blade wearing down the leader's weapon with every clash melting and misshaping it with every second until finally, it cracked and shattered.

The leader would not go down so easily and started to use the gun portion of his weapon to shoot at Alex, and at the same time, the fighting at the crowd began anew, team RWBY fighting their way through the crowd of undertrained fighters, Yang managing to strike fear into some of the enemies before punching their lights out. During the chaos, Blake was busy freeing herself and joining the fight with Alex attacking the leader even without a weapon, choosing to use her fists and kicks to destabilize him.

A heeled boot finds the back of the leaders head and staggers him as Alex's great-sword cleaves upward and finds his mark, splitting his mask and knocking the weapon out of his hands. He lets out a short cry as he falls to the floor, still and blood leaving his body. At this point, the fight in the crowd ended with many knocked out or running for their lives.

Team RWBY embraced their missing member, much to the chagrin of Blake before calling the attack in to Beacon and the existing Atlas military, and a few hours of questioning later, they dragged their tired bodies into the dorm.

"So, what was that all about?" Weiss said, cutting through the silence that seemed so peaceful up until now. Bed never looked so welcoming to Alex, but team meeting first, apparently.

"I got a hint that the White Fang were looking for a new leader, as well as recruiting new members to their cause and I wanted to make sure." Blake replies without making eye contact with anyone, namely Yang. "I didn't want to involve anyone because it's a faunus issue and I thought I could handle it."

At this point, Yang had had enough and finally spoke, grabbing Blake by the shoulder and facing her full on and forcing Blake to look her in the eyes.

"No more of this lone soldier stuff, no one can take on the White Fang alone, but with us you might have a chance. You can't keep shutting us out just because you think we won't understand!" her eyes went red again, but not before the sadness leaked through her anger. Her actions hurt her teammates, but they were still together. After the showing of emotion, they all collapsed on their bunks and silence fell on the dorm again, giving way only to soft snoring from the female members of the team, and Alex lying awake heavy in thought. He was running through the fight over and over again, trying to find ways he could improve, openings he would have to work on to prevent a fight like that again that, without Blake, he may have lost.

"Alex?" A voice tears through his thoughts and draws his attention. There stood Blake, having changed into her yukata at some point during his daydreaming; now standing next to his bed. She sat down when he sat up, showing she had his full attention. She hesitated for a second, kneading her fingers into the hem of her outfit before looking back at him. At this point he noticed she was missing her bow and actually had a pair of cat ears on top of her head. This made several things clear for him.

"I wanted to thank you for saving me out there, but one thing needs to change before I can really trust you." She said, sounding more critical than she wanted to but it needed to be said.

"And what would that be?"

"You need to let the other's know. I can feel it, smell it sometimes when you get carried away during a fight. They need to be let in too if you expect full trust. Believe me; they will understand if you're worried about it." She said, her eyes taking in his features, but seeming a little uncomfortable. Yes this put Alex in a situation that he never wanted to be in again, but it's what needed to be done. He agreed, and Blake even gave him a quick hug and thanked him again before going to bed, Alex following after, abandoning his thoughts of the fight earlier that day.

Come morning, he had his own conversation with the team.

"What is it? Whatever it is, we'll help you if we can." Ruby said, waking herself up enough to go into full leader mode.

"Yeah, nothing could really faze us at this point." Yang let out with a laugh as she was lying in Blake's bunk again. Blake's eyes never left Alex as soon as he called the meeting.

"It's not really anything that needs help, but…Just understand I've had my reasons for not saying something." Alex said, finding it hard to look at his team of the past month.

"Enough waiting, just out with it and we'll deal with it!" Weiss said, doing her best to point in his face, but doing it at almost a ninety degree angle doesn't really work.

"Well, for one it's not a big deal to me as I've learned to live with it, but it still affects me whenever the White Fang come up: I'm a Faunus just like Blake. However, instead of a cat faunus like her, I'm a wolf faunus."

His words flew into the air, and silence reigned. At that moment the group was looking him up and down, even to the point that Blake was worried for what they may do, that was until Yang spoke up.

"Well, Blake has her ears, what about you?" She said. An innocent question, but it carried more weight behind it than she knew.

"That's usually why I don't tell anyone, the story is one of my more painful ones."


	5. Chapter 5 - Bad Memories

-Patch, 6 years ago-

"Big Brother! Do we have to go home already? All we did was shop for food, nothing fun!" Ada whined, her tiny hand held in Alex's firmly, not letting her go to wander off into other stores. All he did was smile and nod his head before continuing on his way with her in tow, still whining all the way.

Ada decided that day she was going out in her favorite Halloween costume even though it was mid-march, but Alex wasn't correcting her as she looked adorable in her onesie that had ears and a tail similar to Alex's. She even drew on the ears and looked just like a baby wolf and it made her happy.

Alex's head was showing off his large ears atop his head, grey in color with white tufts, a stark contrast to his dark brown hair, but he wasn't complaining, his father instilling in him to be proud of his features, that not many are born with both a tail and ears and that it shows him to be truly special.

During their travels, they stopped off for some food, mainly because Ada was constantly complaining about doing one last thing before going home to top off their 'adventure', so he took her to get pizza and, keeping in mind his mother would hate this, some ice cream. Once the tiny junk food container was fed, they started on their way home, heading towards the residential part of Patch, enjoying that transition from busy city streets to a quieter part with fewer shops and more and more houses and apartments. The sun was falling and the moon was dominating the night sky as they made their way down a familiar path through an alley that would shave off a few minutes travel time.

"Big Brother, I'm getting scared." Ada said, pressing herself closer to him, barely coming up to his waist and never releasing his hand. If he had known the trip would take this long, he'd have brought his sword with him.

"You should be, kid." A voice said from a nearby alley, a tall, lanky man walking out with a sadistic grin on his face and brandishing a knife. As he stepped out, his scent hit Alex hard, how he didn't notice him sooner would still plague him for long after this night.

"You need to move along." Alex said, sheltering Ada behind him, already on the defensive. His teachers told him to always be on guard, and this would be a shining example as to why, but it's just a guy with a knife, how bad could he be?

"Or, and I like this option, you drop your valuables, and walk along before we carve you and the girl up good?" He said, waving his knife around at them but not coming any closer. Wait, we?

Sure enough, behind them were two other men, carrying similar knives and equally twisted grins. They were surrounded, and Alex was unarmed defending a young girl currently quivering into his right hip, about to cry. Things were not good, so Alex did the only thing he could think of.

"Ada, on three, you need to run home. You know the way?" He whispered. Ada seemed to pick up on this and nod. He knew she would argue if they weren't trying to be sneaky about planning. Some adventure this was turning out to be.

"One…"

"What the hell are you two doing?" The man said, starting to close distance.

"Two…" The other two were beginning to close in as well.

"THREE!" With a yell, Ada was off and running, before anyone knew what happened, she was a dot on the horizon. As the others were distracted with the girl running, Alex jumped into the first one, pinning him down and kicking away the knife before brutally punching the man's face repeatedly. At this point he got carried away, feeling the bones in the man's face start giving under his aura enhanced punches. Then a sharp pain came from his left ear as a large hand closed around it and heaved him off of the man before he could do more.

"You stupid little mutt!" The one carrying him said before kneeing him in the gut, winding Alex and sending him to the ground, curled over himself, where the second one started kicking him in the ribs. Alex had blood coming from his mouth from the kicks before he recovered enough to snatch the man's foot mid-flight and turn it around on itself, destroying his ankle in the process and earning a rewarding scream from it's owner.

But the short victory was not to last, as a knife came at Alex at such a speed he almost didn't notice it until it buried itself in his chest, knocking him over with the large man on top of him, sadistic eyes staring down at him.

"You're lucky, with that aura of yours, this may not kill you, but you will remember me you mangy mutt." He said, his words coming out akin to a hiss from a snake right before a kill. Alex felt his hopes sink when the knife was removed from his chest, and his body's strength went with it, red electricity covering his torso and a red light coming from his stab wound. His aura was focused on the healing that it left him no strength to fight back.

He watched as the knife was brought to the top of his head.

-Present day-

"He took his time. He carved off my ears no matter how much I begged him to stop, no matter how much it hurt and my aura keeping me from dying. But he wasn't done." At this point, Blake had tears running from her eyes, being consoled by Yang, and Ruby and Weiss were sitting there with apologetic looks on their faces, staying close to each other for comfort.

"After my ears were done and off to the side, he flipped me over and did the same with my tail. After all was said and done, he left me and his friends broken in that street that night, me looking real human with Faunus bits laying around me, and two very, very broken men. Ada got me the help I needed when she got home, but it was my Mother that found me. She's what made me a Wolf Faunus, and father was just a kind man with a love for the Faunus'." Alex concluded his story and looked out to his stunned audience. Noticing how they were stunned with what happened to him, he gave them a smile.

"That was forever ago, I learned to tune out the unfiltered noise from my Faunus ears not being covered anymore, and I eventually got my balance back, now look at me. You'd never guess I'm a maimed Faunus not human enough to be human, but not Faunus enough to be called one. The first person to believe me outside of family was Ozpin." Alex never realized he was crying, never realized that Ruby saw it. All he knew was that in that moment, she crossed the length of their dorm and gave him the biggest hug she could, her strength actually surprising him. Then, oddly enough, Weiss joined in, then Blake, then finally Yang who had started full on crying and her hug lifting the whole group of them.

When the back breaking was finished, they sat in a circle and just stared at each other.

"Oh yeah, Blake, did you want to do anything for the team bonding stuff? You kind of missed it." Alex said, looking to change the subject quickly, his missing ears started to itch and he was feeling off center. Blake picked up on this and seemed to ponder her response.

"There's another book coming out that I want, would you like to go?"

"Sounds fun."

-The next day

It wasn't really. Long lines, full of people that Alex did not know, did not necessarily trust, and a Blake that he could swear was vibrating.

"So, what book are we here for anyway?" Alex asked. Blake immediately froze up and looked at him, her face going red and her eyes wide as dinner plates.

"Just, some book, it doesn't matter."

Picking up on her deflection, Alex decided to admit one of his guilty pleasures, as well as show Blake he saw right through her.

"Wonder when the next Ninja's of love book comes out. I've been waiting forever for it and would love a copy." His cocky grin grew even bigger when realization hit Blake and her face went redder than his jacket. This seemed to be the final straw for her as she started to slap at his shoulder repeatedly while giving him a glare, which only served to make Alex laugh quietly. They were still in a bookstore after all.

After a bit of time, Blake and Alex walked out with copies of the same book for each of them, and silence over the subject matter of the book. Kinda hard to discuss smut out in public.

"Hey Alex?" She said, sounding similar to how she did a couple of nights ago, feeling that she was treading on thin ice. Again, Alex faced her head on.

"I'm sorry I told you to open up to the group, it was obviously a touchy subject that didn't really need to be poked at and I'm sorry." She said quietly. It looked like she was waiting for him to blow up, but all he did was touch her shoulder and smiled as kindly as he could.

"It's best it was now under my own terms. Thank you for caring." He said, before starting to walk away. Blake paused for a second before catching up to him, joining him on his way back to Beacon.

"So, what do you think they'll do about the relationship between-"

"NOT HERE, ALEX!"

"Later then…"


	6. Chapter 6 - Heroic Tendencies

The next few days were uneventful for the group. They attended classes and tried to stay on top of their studies, even Blake was coming out of her shell towards Alex a bit more now that the air's been cleared. Training regiments were instilled and there were regular team meetings to iron out their roles on the team, Yang and Alex being made the heavies of the group meant to soak up most of the initial onslaught where the other's would provide backup.

They sat around the cafeteria table during their lunch period in between classes having an in-depth discussion on how to upgrade Alex's weapon when a familiar laugh was heard from further down the table. Cardin, his laugh a source of major annoyance for most of the student body was back to his bullying days, picking on a short ram Faunus who looked like all they wanted was to eat and leave.

His group had surrounded the small boy and was pushing him around between them. The boy's escape routes were cut off by Cardin's men and he would be summarily pushed back into the center of the group where they would take turns emptying his lunch tray onto him bit by bit. Eventually the boy crumbled under the abuse and could do little else but cover his head and shake. Alex then began to shake as well.

"Never did like that punk, why doesn't somebody do something? Anything?" He said as his fist tightened around his knife and his mind played games on what that knife could be used for. A gentle hand closed around it, it's owner being Blake; her amber eyes staring deeply at him with an apologetic look to her face.

"Nobody wants to invite it on themselves, so they keep quiet. We should get Glynda." She stated, never breaking her stare, but this was not enough for Alex.

"By the time she gets here, they'll be long gone." Alex growled, making Blake recoil. His knife hit the table by the time he got to his feet and started marching down to Cardin, ignoring his team calling after him, even team JNPR trying to block him but recoiling when Pyrrha told them too. His look of anger made Jaune pause before any words even left his mouth. Before long, Alex was standing before Cardin, quietly seething but also trying to keep his fire under control.

"Hm? You got a problem?" Cardin says once he notices Alex standing in front of him.

"Leave him alone." Alex said under a low breath, keeping his anger somewhat in check, but still glaring the man down. The boy that was being bullied noticed what was going on and took the chance to bolt out of their circle, and continued even further out of the cafeteria.

"Aw, you cut off my fun! How do you plan to make it up to me?" Cardin says, sizing up Alex and standing even closer to him.

"It's not fun to be tortured or ridiculed for being born. Your just being an ass."

"Indecent!" Yang yelled from the table, almost jumping over it to cover Ruby's ears and earning a startled look from the redhead.

"Last warning, leave people alone, Cardin." Alex would not back down to a man like Cardin, even when his friends surround him and are snickering between themselves.

"Or what?" Carding says in rebuttal, leaning in close to Alex's face and smirking, his friends also closing in.

 _Deep breathe, count to four, exhale, count to four. They may have you outnumbered, but they're dumb and underestimate you. Use it._

Before anything else can be said, Alex's fist roared up to Cardin and connected with his exposed neck, sending the man backwards clutching his throat and he lands with a loud crash through the table behind him, filling the air with whatever food they were eating at the time. Before his cronies could react, Alex grabbed the fattest member and threw him at the other two, making them share a similar fate as the other two.

"People like you are what's wrong, the problem are the Grimm that fill our world, we don't have time to fight amongst ourselves, but you leave us no choice!" Alex announced loud enough for the cafeteria to hear. He had had enough of people like Cardin, having been in the same situation as that young ram boy when he was younger. And worse, he had to save Ada a few times growing up as well for being related to a Faunus. He kneeled down next to Cardin, who was glaring daggers at him while still holding his throat. "This ends here, or it gets worse for you. A lot worse."

He stood and began to walk back to his seat at the table when the great doors leading into the cafeteria opened, showing the ram boy and Glynda walking in, the boy looking terrified and Glynda full of rage. When she took in the scene, her rage only grew, but she contained it under her professional gaze.

"Student's, there's a time and place for fights, like the training room. This is unacceptable." She then adjusts her glasses and waves her whip, causing the food and table to repair themselves like nothing happened, even Cardin was stood back up. "Alex, come with me."

A chill went down his spine; he never really got over how scary she could be, and complied after a quick wave to his team. They stood outside of the great doors facing each other once the doors closed.

"I understand that you did it to protect another student, I'll even understand your previous history with situations like this, but we have rules for a reason." She had crossed her arms at this point and was staring him down.

"The rules don't work when you can't get here in time, what would've happened to him if I didn't do anything?" Alex says, tossing aside fear for reason at this point. He did have a point, waiting on authorities usually results in the culprit getting away with murder. Also, they were training to be Huntsman and Huntresses, weren't they supposed to be preventing situations like this and standing up for those that can't? It's in the friggin job description!

"Be that as it may, you can't just going around assaulting students." Her tone left little room for discussion, no matter his reasons, she saw him as much in the wrong as Cardin. This made his blood boil, but he could see a losing battle from a mile away, and bowed his head.

"Yes professor." He said, and waited for a few tense seconds before she finally spoke.

"Due to your little friend insisting that you were saving him, I'll let you off with a warning this time, but do not, and I repeat, do not take justice into your own hands unless absolutely necessary." She said, ending with a sigh and leading the ram away, probably to the councilor's office. Alex stood there for a second, watching them go. No matter how she felt, he felt pride for standing up for a younger Faunus, it reminded him of how happy Ada felt whenever he saved her day and would cheer her up after.

A short walk back to his spot at the table, and all eyes were on him from his team and Team JNPR. Yang spoke up first.

"So, how long do you have detention?"

"I don't."

This knocked the table senseless for a second, even Weiss muttering to herself about how students seem to be going unpunished an awful lot lately.

"Just a warning, not to do it again unless necessary." He finished, starting on his now cold food.

He could feel their eyes on him even more for the rest of the meal, but he wasn't bothered by it. He was riding that heroic high for the rest of their free time, and walked quickly to their next class where said high died quickly as Port began one of his famous stories, this one about how he lost his leg valiantly fighting to reclaim the Vytal fighting arena. The first time was interesting enough, the fifth time, not so much.

-Several hours later-

Alex wanted a moment alone to himself to reflect on his day. He kept thinking of other way's he could've ended the encounter with Cardin, several not involving a disabling and potentially fatal throat punch, others saying he shouldn't have held back on the punch. Nothing really falling into place as the right answer and he started to tear himself down. Maybe he acted too quickly and just listened to Blake, but what would've happened to the boy? He doubted they would've hurt him, but you never consider stuff like that in the moment. Diplomacy could've worked as well, but Alex wasn't in a talking mood at the time. He didn't notice a certain cookie reaper walk up next to him until she was poking him.

"You okay? You've been really quiet today, even more than normal and you've got us worried." She said calmly. At this point he even noticed that the rest of the team was there too.

"Just…lost in thought, I promise everything is fine." He said, poking Ruby back and earning a chuckle from her. Turns out she's ticklish; he'd save that for later. When he was done terrorizing her, he looked at Blake.

"Do you think I did the right thing?"

"From a student standpoint, no," He felt his heart drop, but she continued talking. "But, from a Faunus standpoint though, you did something that very few would do, and I support you for it." She ended with a smile that lit up her amber eyes. Her ears twitched as the breeze blew by and Alex let out a sigh of contentment.

"That was a hell of a shot though, his aura couldn't even catch it, and he went down so quick!" Yang exclaimed, throwing an arm around him and showing off her trademark grin, dragging him around by his neck in her excitement.

"Just, please, don't do anything that could get the team in trouble as well. I understand you did what you felt was right, but it's not just you." Weiss finally chimed in. She looked nervous, and admittedly the mood did drop, but it was a classic moment of 'needed to be said' that she was great at doing. Alex returned her worried look with a soft smile and nodded, causing her to noticeably relax.

All was not well with the world though, as the next day was combat training day, and the air was tense. Alex could feel Cardin staring him down from his seat, and glance away whenever Alex tried to catch him at it. It got to the point that even Yang and Blake noticed and were getting equally frustrated with it.

"Today's a special day, today we're going to have you fight each other rather than the practice Grimm. At any point you may have to defend yourself from your own kind, and you need to be ready for it. Cardin, pick your opponent." Port said from the front of the class. As soon as the words were out, Alex was ready for the fight he knew was coming, and Cardin delivered by pointing him out literally.

Armed and ready for a fight, they met in the center of the room.

"This was a mistake, Cardin." Alex growled to the only man paying attention to him right now.

"We'll see, ready to get your ass-", "Indecent!"" handed to you?" They stepped back to their parts of the arena, drawing their weapons and taking in their targets. In a few seconds, Alex would let Cardin know just who he was messing with, and he'd enjoy it; Cardin, not so much.

"FIGHT!" The great call heard from Port rattled off the walls and hit the warriors, and less than a second later, they were at each other like rabid animals. Alex's sword not showing its fire, but dancing in equal tempo with Cardin's made, and dodging in fluid motions when Cardin's gun made an appearance. It wasn't long until Alex realized he was toying with his prey.

"Just stand still, dammit!" Cardin shouted as another round found no purchase on Alex.

"Indecent!"

"Knock it off, Yang!"

"I've had enough of you anyway, I'm ending this." Alex says, stopping across from Cardin and erupting in flames, they were threatening to even reach out and burn Cardin at this point, causing the man to stop and stare at the lotus flower of flames dancing in front of him.

Alex reached out his blade and focused the fire into it, but not to wrap the blade in, but to focus the fire into a ball at the end. A few seconds later, the ball erupted into a concentrated heat wave at Cardin, who had brought up his Mace to block it and apparently forgetting how physics worked when it came to fire. The pressure built up to a roar as the flames engulfed him, and Alex switched his eyes to the scoreboard up on the wall showing their aura levels. As soon as it hit red, Alex doused his fire quickly, and the temperature in the room dropped to almost freezing as everyone acclimated to the air conditioned room. Laying on the floor, covered in minor burns and very much unconscious was Cardin.

Port hesitated for a second, and when he was sure the poor boy was still alive, announced Alex as the victor, and his team cheered loud enough for the room to shift their gaze to them, wondering if they were alright.

"Alright, while I take this lad on to the infirmary; everyone, class dismissed." Port said, throwing Cardin into a fireman carry and walking out of the room. Alex stowed his sword and grinned at his team as they all but ran at him. Ruby and Yang full force tackled him to the ground and began talking all at once, and Alex felt himself slip away to unconsciousness as well.

He woke up later in the dorm, his team asleep in their bunks as well, and he decided just to end the day in comfort and went back to sleep.


	7. Chapter 7 - Crossing the line

The next few weeks were just as quiet, Cardin spent most of it in the infirmary recovering from the burns that got through his aura, and his cronies kept to themselves now that they were lacking leadership. When Alex finally came too, his team did their level best to make him comfortable and speed up his recovery. As it turned out, his attack did as much damage to him as much as Cardin, but Alex was more exhausted by it than anything and slept most of the next day. And the day after as well.

"Hey, Alex; it's time to wake up." Blake's voice cut through his dreams, waking him up and catching his attention, Blake standing above his bed looking down on him, holding a steaming mug before her.

"That for me?" Alex said, getting out of his comfortable haven and sitting on the edge of his bed. Blake let out a chuckle.

"Nope, this one's keeping my hands warm, yours is on the table." Blake sat down on her bunk, to the left of his bed and watched as Alex gulped down the scalding liquid.

"Today is just us, the others have gone into town to satiate Weiss' need for shopping, and Ruby wants a new part for her weapon." Blake answered the unasked question. Alex pondered for a second; trying to figure out why they left both of them behind, then let it go. They probably didn't want to wake him.

Trying to figure out what Blake wanted to do, Alex was ready for another library trip, or to do some of the mounting homework, but instead she opted for a quiet day in, maybe with a movie or something. Alex felt something was wrong, and tried to figure it out while Blake went to find a movie from their small collection. She eventually settled on Beauty and the Beast, stating that this is one of the few movies that still get her attention even after so many viewings.

The movie was still going through the trailers when Alex finally figured what it was. Blake was looking super uncomfortable and averting her eyes whenever Alex seemed to be paying close attention. More than likely something was on her mind that she didn't know how to ask. Alex reached for the remote and paused it mid trailer in order to talk uninterrupted as well as earning a displeased whine from Blake.

"I thought we were going to watch the movie?"

"In a second, you've been off since I woke up. Whatever it is, I'd like to help if I can." Alex replied, waving the remote around in mock surrender. Once again, Blake found the floor oddly interesting and started to play with the ribbon tied to her wrist. A few tense moments went by before Blake let out a deep breath and looked Alex straight on.

"I don't know what's going on, really. Ever since the fall, Yang's been hanging onto me for dear life. I don't know how to feel about it if I'm being honest."

"Are you worried that you did something wrong?"

"I always seem to jump to that, don't I? But it's more than that, and I don't want to be wrong about it. This could alter our friendship either very good or very bad if it's not handled properly." Blake replied, hesitation hidden by calm planning. Once again she was playing with her ribbon, showing off one of her few nervous ticks. Alex sat quiet for a second, making sure she was done talking before he replied.

"What is it that you want from Yang? Maybe that can be one of the main issues that can simplify the others."

"Always so analytical; but, your right. I don't know what I want though. Ever since the fall, I've been terrified of getting close to anyone again, but I can't help it with her. Is it weird for a girl to have these thoughts about another girl? Especially from separate species?" Every word becoming more and faster paced, Blake was driving herself up a wall, and Alex needed to calm her down.

"Ignoring the cat ears, you both have arms, feet, a head with two eyes; unless you're hiding something from me." Alex leered at Blake in a clearly joking matter, earning a small chuckle from the raven haired woman. "And you both love spending time together. There's hardly a morning that you two don't start in each other's bunks. I can't speak for Yang, but if you have these feelings, isn't it best to try at the very least and have that extra bond, than kill yourself wondering if maybe?" Alex finished his speech feeling pretty good about himself. Blake even calmed down a bit and had a genuine smile on her face as hope danced through her amber eyes.

"You're right. We've been partners for so long; something like this wouldn't change anything. I should talk to her!" She said, also mimicking Alex's thoughtful stance the same way that Ruby did a few days ago. He was starting to wonder if he did it so often they've made it a running gag.

"Thanks to you, I may just have found my answer. Thank you so much." Blake said, dropping her mimicking to talk to Alex straight on again, her smile going ear to ear and a giggle to her voice. Alex could tell she was giddy with excitement.

"If you want, you can go try to find them in town. I'll even go with if you'd like."

"Nope, we've got a movie to watch." Blake replied, reaching across Alex and grabbing the remote. Alex picked up a whiff of peppermint and immediately tried to distract himself from anything related to Blake. Like that one Disney movie that was playing in the outdated trailer now that came out 20 years ago. While he was distracted, he didn't notice that Blake had gone from just grabbing the remote to actually hugging him. Full on hugging him, even, usually she does a small side hug and even those were rare. This was a real Blake hug, and Alex was soaking it in. At least until the door opened.

Now, no matter how well you know a couple of people, a dim, empty dorm room with a 'romantic' movie on queue; and a pretty girl having any intimate contact with a male, even just a hug could be taken the wrong way. There at the door frame, watching them with steadily filled crimson eyes was Yang, her fist balling into a fist and starting to shake. Blake immediately jumped to her feet and tried to approach Yang, but something made her stop short.

"It's really nothing; we were just going to watch a movie while you guys were gone." She said, sounding a lot more timid than she normally would be.

"Yeah, sure. I get it, I'll leave you two to your 'date'." And with that, Yang was gone from the dorm, the door bowing under how hard she slammed it. Rooted to the floor, Blake stood watching the door, and she too started to shake and Alex could hear the whimpering and early onset of tears coming from her. With this, he finally shot off of the bunk they were using as a chair and stood before Blake.

"Listen, it's all going to work out. I'll find her. Just, stay here 'til I get back ok?" Alex said. When Blake finally nodded, Alex tore out of the room and started to run about the campus. Where would Yang go when she was upset? He tried the gym, but couldn't find her. Tried the training room she took him to when they had their day together, but not there either. Then he had a great idea: Ruby.

Pulling out his scroll, he pulled up her info from his phone immediately and dialed and only got an audio connection.

"Hey, hope it's a big deal, out with Weiss still and its kinda private." Ruby's hushed voice was heard on the other end. Alex took the opportunity to fill her in on the situation, leaving out Blake's confession just in case.

"Oh, then she'll be wandering the emerald forest looking for Grimm to smash. Please find her before there's no forest." Ruby said, obviously less concerned for Yang, and more the ecosystem. The feed cut, and Alex ran full boar towards the forest, and hopped on the first platform that fired him into the forest.

After landing, all he had to do was follow the shattered trees and fading Grimm until he found her. She was bleeding from several small cuts, but only seemed to be bothered by what happened about an hour beforehand. She seemed hardly phased by any of the dangers of the forest, and at this moment, Alex realized he forgot his sword back at campus. This had to be resolved quickly before something big came along.

"You didn't need to come looking for me." Yang says, finally acknowledging Alex's existence. He fist uncurled and was resting on her hip as she faced him, her vibrant purple eyes seemed dulled at this moment.

"I had to; my teammate ran head first into a known Grimm den not in a clear mind. What was I supposed to do?" Alex replied, closing the distance to where he could reach out and grab her if needed. So could she, though so who knows what's going to happen?

"I just needed to clear my head, and I do that best with my fists. I didn't mean to interrupt your guy's date." Yang replied, sadness covering her face again and she diverted her gaze to the grass below her feet, scorched and covered in the smoking Grimm blood.

"Wasn't a date. We were just watching a movie, and I helped her through a personal matter and she hugged me. That's all." Alex said, keeping his face serious. Yang looked back at him for a second before her face contorted to one of confusion.

"But, I saw you hugging, and the room was dark."

"Dark for the movie and have you never hugged a friend before?"

"But she never hugs anyone, not even me!"

"Is that what you're upset about? That she hugged me?" They were growing closer to each other at this point, Yang's eyes red, and Alex's fingers laced with sparks of fire.

"No!" She exclaimed.

"Then what?!" He inched closer to her.

"I don't know!"

"How can you not know?! Are you that prone to tantrums?"

"You're going a little far, and you need to back down."

"Make me, Yang."

Yang erupted at, finally having had enough, her semblance burning a clear patch of dirt into the grass, almost glassing the ground behind her and she roared, reaching out with her hand to grab Alex's jacket. At the same time, Alex let his fire go, his vision going red around his peripheral and the fire framing his body and licking around him at random, some touching Yang, but she wasn't registering.

"You're coming back to Beacon with me and we're setting this right, I'll drag you there if I have to."

"I'd love to see you try, boy." Yang said, all joy gone from her face, and those blood red eyes focusing in on Alex, cutting into his soul. Deep down he felt terrible that it came down to a fight between friends, but on the surface, he was getting excited. As soon as the word 'boy' was thrown at him, her words laced with extremely potent venom, his blood began to boil and they finally clashed, blowing a crater into the forest floor and vaporizing the Grimm bodies.

They fought for what seemed like forever, arms and legs flying and connecting with whatever they could find, fire dancing around and burning whatever it could, but neither fighter willing to back down an inch. Yang's fist had broken a few ribs on Alex, whereas she would be nursing burns for the next few days, and a few fractured fingers. When the fight seemed to reach a climax, both of their exhausted bodies thrown at each other in a last ditch attempt at victory, both of their wills broke, and Alex caught Yang in a hug, as she broke down and started crying.

By now, the sunny day gave way for the moon and its infinite army of stars. The forest swayed in the breeze, playing its music through the leaves and the grass, the animals already long gone into hiding from their small war. Lying in his arms, as he barely held himself together, Yang cried. She cried for what felt like forever, dwarfing their time fighting, and Alex felt her pain. He could feel her heart breaking and her worry over what her friendships would be. During their time together, she had told him about how people she cared about continuously leaving her and this seemed to be another time of that. She was worried about Alex and Blake leaving her behind too and leaving so much unspoken between them.

"I'm sorry, I keep hurting you rather than thinking it out." She said, finally calming herself down enough to speak in actual sentences.

"I'm sorry too, we didn't have to fight but at the same time I think it helped us get some relief." Alex said, rubbing her back and attempting to ground her. Ada always did like tight hugs so, by default, that's what Alex did when someone was sad. No one ever corrected him, so it had to work to a degree.

"We should probably head back, it's already past curfew."

"After you."

True to Alex's request, when they finally snuck back into the dorm room, there sat Blake. However, she was not alone; there was a certain blonde boy with too many abs to be Jaune, and one too many tails sitting next to her. He was holding her, and at that point, Alex felt fear. Yang froze next to him and took in the sight before Blake realized what was going on. But this time, her apologetic look was gone, and she stood up from her seat and walked up to Yang.

"We need to talk, alone for a second." She motioned back to the door and the two of them left. The boy she was with stood once the door closed and walked up to Alex.

"Hey, don't think we met, I'm Sun! Sun Wukong."

"Normally, I'd be more cheery, but I think you may have just set my team back a few steps by being here. What were you doing holding her?" Alex all but growled, and Sun recoiled under his harsh gaze.

"Well I was climbing the tree when I heard her crying, so I came in-"

"Through the window?!"

"Yes, through the window, anyway;" Sun glared at Alex for his interruption, like that was the only thing wrong with this situation. "She explained what was going on to me, then one thing led to another, we watched a movie, then we kinda… kissed." Sun said, a sheepish grin going over his face. Alex was seeing red again, and could hear Yang start to yell from the hallway, but he was focused on this monkey boy in front of him. For all his efforts that day, this boy managed to ruin all of that in a second, and that did not sit right with Alex. He had had enough of this day and was going to start with this boy. He reaches out and grabs him by his shirt and pulls him real close, close enough to feel the heat of his breath and see the red lining of his eyes.

"Listen closely, Sun, as I'm only going to tell you once. Leave. My team. Alone." He let him go immediately after and motioned to the door. Sun glared at him and straightened out his shirt, then left. A few seconds later, Yang came back in. Alone.

"Where's Blake?"

"She went with him. I messed up real bad, Alex." Yang whispered, and started to hold herself, before Alex stopped her with his own hug, resting his chin on her head.

"No you didn't. This just needs fixing, but we'll be okay. Just believe in me, and the rest of the team." Alex said, trying to soothe Yang. Blake would not come back that night, and Yang would spend most of the next morning in bed, and Alex was seeing red non-stop since Sun had left.

He needed to find Blake, and fix this.


	8. Chapter 8 - Going the Distance

One thing is for sure: if Blake didn't want to be found, she wouldn't be; at least she would make it difficult for everyone involved. The remaining members spend the following day combing through Vale, looking for any hint of their missing member, or the monkey Faunus she was apparently now tied to. She wasn't in any of the book stores; café's or even weapon shops she frequented. She wasn't seen in any of the parks that Yang would take her to, it was almost as if she had never existed, and she wouldn't even attend her classes, same with Sun.

Yang was at her wits end. Even if her feelings were not reciprocated, she still wanted her partner back, just to talk to her again. Their downtime had Yang spending time sulking in Blake's bunk, mindlessly playing on her phone and tuning out the world. Alex didn't take a moment, however; he was spending whole nights out and about the seedier parts of Vale trying to find a trace of Blake. He had encountered the White Fang a handful of times, and even with the proper application of the occasional beating, nobody had seen her.

One morning, Yang was acting particularly weird, not sulking, but actually having energy again. It was as if new life had been given to her and she started caring about the little things that Alex did. She started taking care of herself and fretted that Alex wasn't, walking in after days of being gone on the hunt.

"You're not going to find anyone if you fall over dead, silly." She chuckled as she handed him a hot mug of coffee she threw on when he dragged himself into their door. Dropping his jacket and weapons, he welcomed the coffee gladly and gulped it down; ignoring the burn in his throat screaming that it was a mistake. The pain reminded him that he was still up and moving, and welcomed the pain.

Yang was sitting next to him, her normal grin lighting her beautiful face, but Alex saw right through it.

"You don't have to pretend for me, Yang. I know you're upset, and I'm trying to fix it." Alex said, setting his mug down, but not looking at Yang. Her look was lying to him and that wasn't what he wanted.

"There's nothing to fix." She said, almost a whisper. Alex finally looked up at her to see her look of hurt. She looked really bothered by what he said, eyes down at the floor and hands gripping the bed as she still faced him, her blonde hair blocking her face.

"What do you mean? Our teammate is out there who knows where and I can't find her." Alex grumbled. The exhaustion was taking a toll on him and his filter wasn't working like it should. His vision was filling with a mix of red and blue, and he was feeling a stifling heat, as well as a chill down to his core. Yang wasn't helping as she grew closer.

"I miss her too, but we can't fall apart here. We have to look out for each other too, you know." Yang said, turning his chin to meet her million dollar smile again. Alex felt something was wrong, but he was frozen in place, not knowing what was happening.

Yang locked eyes with him, and he could feel her sweet breath on his face, her eyes locking with his; her hair falling just right as it always did, her lips seeming so inviting. Even more so when they were closing in on his, her eyes closing and head tilting, and Alex held his breath. He knew he was attracted to her, who wouldn't be, but this was wrong. After what happened a few days ago, this was the last thing to have happened, the person who had Yang's heart was still Blake; more than likely always would be. He had no place here, this was Blake's spot, and he acted right before they connected.

His arm came up across her chest and pushed on her shoulder, and he pushed gently. He had looked away to not see the look of hurt that inevitably came to her face, but this had to be done.

"I'm not a substitute, Yang. Yes, I like you. A lot, actually. But it's not supposed to be like this. I'm not a band-aid for the hurt your feeling and I refuse to be. I'll bring back the person you really want to be kissing, but it's not me." Alex said, every word filling his heart with hurt, and becoming harder with every syllable. Yang had yet to recover from her recoil until his words were done and he crawled back into himself, his colors somehow both draining and flaring both at once.

"…I'm so sorry." Yang finally broke the silence, her sadness leaking from her words and filling Alex's heart with more hurt. He never thought she'd ever try this with him, was convinced that Blake was who she was after, and refused to even think they'd fit together. But amidst his internal struggle, he finally got an idea that could help expedite their search. Ozpin. He always seemed to have eyes everywhere and would know something that they don't. It was worth a shot.

"I'm going to go see Ozpin, and I will be back. Until then, take some time to sort yourself out. I haven't given up, Yang, and I want to help you be genuinely happy." Alex said, over his shoulder as he left, still not looking at Yang. It would only bring up more bad thoughts and he needed his mind clear. The trek to the headmaster's office was long and empty. The halls were barren as the students had long ago gone to bed. He submitted his request to see the headmaster through his scroll, and even as gung ho as he was, he was still shocked when Ozpin allowed it. The elevator ride up Ozpin's tower did nothing to dissuade the nagging voice in Alex's head saying he earned the chance to be with Yang, to be what she needed. As much as he wanted it, having developed feelings for all of them over their time together, they needed him in totally different ways and he was okay with that.

The doors opened to Ozpin's office, slightly different ever since the fall. The far wall that used to be a window overlooking Vale, it had been replaced with a giant clock, steampunk in design and fitting with his gearwork motif. The desk was now a solid mahogany with a small computer build into the top of it, retro in design so as to cut down on access points, scrolls having to be plugged in directly and ran through his own security suite before allowing access, and his chair now a solid slab of black leather with a leg rest for him to rest his charred leg on. His fight with Cinder was long and grueling, almost having his body give out when she blasted him, but, and he admitted it himself, he won through luck. But, even though Cinder had been killed and Adam rested in an unmarked grave somewhere in the Emerald Forest, he seemed to never have stopped working, but other than that the room seemed wholly unchanged.

"Yes, how can I help you?" Ozpin said, glancing over his mug as he took a sip. One day, Alex was going to find what was in that mug that can keep Ozpin going for seemingly ever.

"Blake Belladonna, I don't know where she went and wanted to request your help. Any intel you can give would be greatly appreciated." Alex stated, keeping his flaring emotions in check and keeping it strictly professional. Ozpin downed another gulp, and set the mug down.

"Ms. Belladonna has requested a leave of absence for herself and Sun Wukong to Menagerie. This is supposed to be strictly private, but I see that this matter has affected the team?"

"Yes, headmaster. It's urgent that I find her and bring her back for the safety and stability of my team. Thank you."

"Be careful, though. The White Fang here are nothing compared to the ones in Menagerie. You'd be wise to not go alone."

"Sir, Ruby is needed here to keep the team going, Weiss helps with that. And if we want there to be a Menagerie still standing, Yang needs to stay here. I won't be alone as soon as I find my teammate." Alex paused, then said his goodbyes to the stoic headmaster, thankful to finally have some answers.

-2 days later-

Alex didn't regret telling the other's that he was going to Menagerie to find Blake, he didn't regret telling Yang that she couldn't come due to her explosive tendencies, he did feel bad; however, that all this would fall on Ruby. He'd bake for her the biggest chocolate cake he could to apologize as soon as they got back.

Having had his Faunus traits taken from him, most of his life he had been able to pass for human, even fooling some Faunus, and arriving here was no exception. He almost wasn't allowed on the ship due to worry's for his safety, but he demanded it. Arriving, he was met with an army of glares from other Faunus, the island being just full of them. When he disembarked, he was subjected to an endless tide of pushing and snide comments from the Faunus. Because, to them, why has a human come to their village, when the human's put them there anyway.

Alex did not give a damn.

He began his search at the market, asking for Belladonna's family, house, anything really. Every time they would clam up quickly, some even closing up shop when he approached and it was starting to get old. So he decided to go try something he hadn't done in years. Since he lost his appendages, his parents had trained him to hide what features were left, his sense of smell and his eyes. Much like how some Faunus can conceal claws and horns, he was able to hid his eyes, and dull his sense of smell when he didn't need it. Now, he needed them out and on display.

Taking a deep breath, he let loose on his control a bit and felt a weight leave his face and shoulders as the energy unconsciously used to continue his façade fell away. Thick black hairs covered the skin around his eyes, and black replaced the pink muscle that keeps the eye in place, but the biggest change was in his eye's themselves. The normal hazel eyes that people see were replaced with yellow, piercing orbs with single small pupils of darkness in the center, the color not too far off of a full moon. The Faunus standing around him recoiled for a second, their heckling all but stopping instantly.

He opened his eyes to the apologetic looks those around him were giving. To be fair, they didn't know, so Alex let it go and started his questioning over anew. This time it worked, they led him to a large house in the center of town, dwarfing those around it by several stories, the oriental style falling into cadence with those around it making it seem like it belonged there. Alex was impressed, but also intimidated trying to figure out why the Belladonna residence was so large as opposed to the others. Just who was Blake outside of Beacon other than a member of the White Fang?

Before he could knock, a pain in his teeth reminded him of another thing he was so used to not living with. His fangs came into full form and sharpened, cutting into his mouth. He situated his jaw so that they were draped over his bottom lip like they used to be, and he relaxed once the taste of copper left his mouth. He then chuckled when he pictured what Blake would look like when she saw him in all his splendor, and the fear that Sun should instinctively feel being near him.

Mustering his courage, he reached out and knocked the albeit large knocker that filled the center of the front door. A few seconds went by before Alex heard soft padding on the other side and straightened up as the great door finally opened.

On the other end was an aged looking Blake, but not her. Spitting image though, except for the short black hair, pierced cat ear, age lines and oriental style kimono dress that managed to show off her figure but also be classy. Alex froze when her eyes locked with his and she gasped, raising a hand to cover her mouth and her ears drooped.

"Hello, I'm-"

"Alex?" She said, knocking Alex for a loop. How did this woman know him?


	9. Chapter 9 - Reunions

They stood there in shock for a tense moment, Alex not knowing how someone from Menagerie, much less some random woman apparently living with the Belladonna's, and her still covering her mouth and in shock.

"Um, excuse me?" Alex said, more so just to fill the air. The situation was doing wonders for dumbfounding him as well.

"I can't believe it's you! It's been so long! Please, come inside!" She said, immediately beckoning him inside the massive house that he still wasn't used to. That being said, it felt familiar to him somehow, but he couldn't place it. The foyer was just as imposing, columns holding up the large ceiling, and walking in shows off the grand staircase that fills most of the entrance. Off to the sides are statues and busts of other Faunus', none of which stuck out to him much, but they must have been important.

When they were inside and the large door was shut, the woman couldn't contain herself anymore and proceeded to hug him tightly, a large smile on her face. It felt like he was hugging a giddy Blake, so it was safe to assume they were related. Maybe an older sister? Questions for later.

She did hold on for a few seconds too long though, and she knew it; so she broke the hug just after it became uncomfortable and straightened out her outfit.

"I'm sorry, you might have me confused for someone else. I've never met you before." Honesty usually worked for him, but he felt really guilty when her cat ears wilted a bit and her face became a mixture of sad and hurt.

"I'd never forget you…" She said, her hurt coming through her voice. Then she perked up, almost immediately and looked determined, and Alex felt that this was going to be an all day affair.

"I'll help you remember me, but we should start with names. My name's Kali." She said; her smile still in place firmly, and the name struck a chord with Alex. He had heard of Kali during the brief stint near the White Fang, but never really questioned it. He was then brought out of his stupor when she grabbed his hand and started leading him up the stairs.

"So, what brings you to Menagerie?" Her question froze him for a second, but again, honesty usually works.

"I'm looking for Blake Belladonna, heard of her?" Alex said, not removing his hand and following her deeper into the house. His question tickled her as she started laughing hard.

"I would hope so, I'm her mom!" Alex's jaw almost hit the floor, but he restrained himself. Their journey led them to a large rice screen door, the lights on the other side casting ominous shadows over the door, showing that the inside was not empty, but there were no sounds. She slid it to the side, revealing a large office. A heavy wooden desk filled with papers sat in the back near a large painting on the wall, and the remaining walls either filled with bookshelves, or leading out onto the balcony that overlooked the village. Kali released him, and he started to wander around, taking in the books and the sight of the village under the now setting sun. The far off ocean still cast a faint glow of what was left of the sun that left behind an orange sky filled with darker hued clouds and the clinging heat falling off his shoulders. The forest that surrounded the village went dark as the wind ruffled the leaves, and the smell of Fall coming early this year filled his now released hyper sense of smell.

"To be honest, it was your scent that I remembered. Very distinctive."

"People keep smelling me lately… Don't know how I feel about it being used to identify me." Alex joked, a small chuckle escaping him.

"Your voice has gotten so deep than when I last saw you, but by then you barely came up to my shin." Kali also chuckled. Alex noticed that her eyes cautiously flicked up to the top of his head, then hastily back to his warm autumn eyes. She'll ask when she's brave enough, he figured and let it go.

During his daydreaming, she had grabbed a thick book from one of the shelves and waved him over to one of the guest tables that decorated the room near a soft ruby colored couch and two armchairs of similar color and design. He sat down next to her as she opened the book, a photo album as it turned out, and went page by page. She paused at a few she felt like sharing, but was looking for a specific one.

About halfway through the book, she came to a large picture, faded with age, but holding some color. It was a full page picture of the family, her standing next to a rather large man that looked like he would even dwarf Alex, so much so that he had to crouch into the picture, but for how intimidating he was, he had one of the most genuine smiles on his face as he held her. In her arms was a small cat Faunus, raven hair messy and falling from a tiny head with equally dark cat ears above her head, a contrast to her pale skin and she was smiling as her mother held her up into the frame, happy amber eyes staring back at the camera. It was safe to say this was a very young Blake in the shot. But something was off, there was a torn corner to the picture, but it didn't stop Alex from gasping.

Although half of him was torn off, down the center of his body, there was a also very young Alex staring back at the camera, not smiling however. He looked roughed up, sad, his ears drooped and his eyes surrounded by baby black hairs and the warm colors dimmed a bit. He was dressed in tattered clothes and his tail was drifting off from one side of his body into the shattered realms of the picture where it was ruined.

"That's, that's me! But I've never been here before!"

"Not that you remember." Kali said, her soothing tone calming the anxiety in Alex's chest a bit, but not entirely. She would elaborate over a short story about how Alex's parents were having difficulties with the White Fang at that point, not agreeing with the peaceful methods and during their campaign, had Kali and Ghira, Blake's dad and the giant in the picture, watch after him. This was easy to accept as Kali, having helped as a nurse at the time, helped to deliver Alex into this world, sang him his first lullaby, helped him to walk. When both Blake and Alex wanted to join the White Fang, her heart broke for both of them, and tried to be a parent, as much as Alex would let her. His instincts, even from a young age were very keen when they needed to be, and he knew he didn't belong with them; so he would rebel. This led to a low point for the Belladonna family.

-12 years ago, Menagerie-

Alex, a young boy at this point, had snuck out of the Belladonna house, his claws easy gear to use to scale the large tree that grew outside his window. He left behind Blake, she wanted to come, only for her safety. Ever since they were looking for ways to join the White Fang, they've been subject to bullying, and Alex took it on himself to fight this problem head on. He would protect Blake from harm, even if he was walking into a losing battle. The boys of the neighborhood would surely gang up on him, would take their time to hurt him. They've made it obvious with the threats they've been giving lately. Some even followed Blake home from her school, even fewer chased her there, but all fled when Ghira got wind of it.

No, this would be settled by Alex, they weren't his real family, but they treated him like they belonged. They had agreed to meet near their school, in a back road behind several houses that were still undoubtedly asleep at this early hour. At the end of this narrow passage, was a boy with flaming red hair, flanked by two boys. The red haired one had two dark horns growing out of his head, and his piercing, angry red eyes burned into Alex. His instincts told him to run; that he couldn't handle this boy, but it was too late. He was in it; and for Blake's safety, he'd take on the world.

Kali awoke to the sound of scratching outside her door, leaving her spot near her ever warm husband and his loving embrace, pulled her yukata tighter around her from the new chill away from him, and approached the door. On the other side was Blake, shaking and crying quietly. Kali's mother instincts kicked in immediately, and she held her daughter as she silently cried into her shoulder; neither wanted to wake Ghira unless they needed to.

When she had let it out enough to speak, her tiny voice, rarely used, spoke quietly to her mother, almost whispering.

"Alex went to face those boys I told you about, the ones that chase us. I didn't want to get him in trouble, but they'll hurt him!" She was getting emotional again, tears starting to pour faster than they had been a minute ago. Kali held her daughter closer to her and rubbed the base of her ears slowly, relaxing Blake as very few knew how to do, getting a purr out of her and managed to make her smile. Kali picked Blake up in her arms and carried her deeper into the room.

"Do you know where he went?" She asked; calm masking her urgency to find the boy. She would later admit to being terrified he wouldn't come back. Blake nodded her head and confided in her mom the exact place and time that everything would happen, Alex having told her just so Blake would feel better about him going. Kali smiled at her daughter's perfect memory and gave her a quick hug before speaking again.

"Let's wake your father."

Meanwhile, this bull Faunus was laying into Alex hard, his buddies holding him down and not even close to letting him go. They overpowered him quickly in the fight when the red haired bull proved he was not only strong, but fast. Alex was on his back before he knew the fight started, and was getting hammered in the skull hard by this beast of a boy. His buddies would get a few good shots in on his ribs, or pull his ears, but the true pain was from the boy straddling his chest and taking free shots on his exposed face. His eye was already swollen at some point, but the boy's fist had torn through and deflated the skin, sending his own blood straight into his eye.

Alex stopped squirming what felt like forever ago, he was in this deep, and didn't see a way out. Help wasn't coming, he made himself the martyr to protect a scared little girl that was way too invested in the storybooks she read more than anything. Maybe he wanted to be a hero for her and make the story real, but it didn't work out for him. Now the villain of the story was toying with him, making sure he knew how small he was.

"You think your good enough for the White Fang?! Your parents couldn't even cut it, and they helped start it!" The boy was snickering over him, the pummeling stopped in favor or morale cutting mockery.

"Leave my parents out of this." Alex hissed through bloody teeth. The boy glared at him and stood, only to stomp his boot down on Alex's cheek and hold it there, crushing his head every second.

"Your mutt parents left you with the Belladonna's, clearly to keep their pack strong. They don't want or need a runt like you." The boy's words went darker and darker, but Alex stopped listening. His parent's absence was not lost on Alex, and he never had a reason for why they left short of something involving the White Fang. He honestly though that joining them would bring him closer to his parent's coming back. His parents were always a sore subject, but he was in charge of those fights and had won, this was different. Here, he was small and powerless, here he might die.

Before the world went dark, and all was silent again, he heard a familiar angry voice tear through the night and the foot left his head. When he came to, he was in a hospital, disinfectant smell burning his sensitive nose, and the beeping of the heart monitor stabbing into his ears, making him flinch. Off through a door on the other side of the room, he saw a tall man towering over what seemed to be a doctor, a sad look to his face and his powerful shoulders drooping. He glanced into the room and waved to Alex, and fear went through Alex's body as he hid under the blankets.

Later that same day, the people that were his birth parents would steal him from the hospital, and he wouldn't see the Belladonna's for many years after that.

-Present day-

"The doctor would later tell us that the assault had damaged your brain and it would need time to heal. You forgot us, forgot Blake, but something inside you must have remembered." Kali said, her story had saddened her deeply. Alex was lost in his flashback, the memories did hurt, and maybe he had shut them out. Maybe he could recall them now that he had been reminded because of the repairs his aura was capable of, either way, he remembered how he had cared for this family, loved each and every one of them even if he showed this by rebelling. He then surprised Kali by placing a hand on her shoulder and smiling at her.

"I'm glad I came back, but I still need to find Blake. Would you help me?" Alex said gently. Kali froze for a second, then her normal smile was back and she gave him a quick hug that, this time, he didn't jump at nor freeze up. It actually felt nice. Felt like home, even.

" She's been here for a few days, should be asleep in her room right now." Kali said. She then made a shush motion with her hand and led him through the house again. The house was so quiet, they could hear the flora and fauna outside the house clearly, finally they stopped in front of a large oak door.

"She's in there, I don't know what made you cross Anima just to find her, but please, kindness." Kali said, her smile slipped slightly as she smoothed out his jacket's lapel and eyed him closely, a mother's eyes and kindness.

"I wouldn't be any other way. She's my teammate, and apparently a person very close to me that I forgot. We've got a lot to discuss." Alex said, keeping his voice low. Kali smiled at him, and hugged him again.

"By the way, if you're staying for a while, rather than pay for a hotel, please stay here; at least to see Ghira again. It'll be a nice surprise." And with that she was gone, and Alex felt the anxiety again. What would he do if she wasn't alone in there right now? What would he say even if she was? He finally settled on screw it and opened the door.

The inside of the room was lit by a single candle on top of a table. There was not much to this room; just a bed and closet and the table, but minimalistic has its benefits. On the bed was a mess of sheets and pillows leading to a solitary figure of raven hair and twitching cat ears that were wrapped in a dark looking warm fabric, not a bow but just something to quiet extra noise and keep them warm; probably was bothered from her reading by the ruckus outside. Her ear buds had a popular song playing that he recognized but ignored, and chose instead to approach softly and let his heavy footfalls hint her to his location.

It worked as her eyes darted from the book up to him immediately fixed in a glare, then to shock, then to sadness as she ripped the ear buds out and slammed the book.

"Alex?! What are you doing here?!" She said, cover her yukata clad body in her blanket, even though he'd seen it dozens of times.

"To talk, apparently about more than I thought I would. I met Kali, again apparently." Alex said, stressing the word 'apparently' every time it left his mouth. Blake looked at him, wondering what was going on in his head to make him cross Anima all the way to Menagerie, when his eyes found clear light and they focused on how different they were. The black fur lining his eyes like a mask, but also highlighting the warm orange-yellow light that were his eyes, the candlelight reflecting off them perfectly. He had claws, fangs, and if he still had his ears, they'd be pointed up at all times.

"More secrets, Alex? Really?" She sighed, a chuckle coming out for a second before she continued on an important note. "And what do you mean again? You've never met my mom before." Blake argued. Alex let out a sigh, and began to retell the story he was told by the woman, starting with the picture. He recalled every detail he could, every painful moment laid bare before his friend, her amber eyes growing larger every second.

Every mention of the bull Faunus made Blake visibly flinch, and start playing with the hem of her yukata. She would later explain that this was the same Adam that her team fought and killed during the fall, his death at their hands still a painful memory. At one point she had worked with him, over time even loved him, but when he fell he was nothing but a monster like the Grimm that filled the streets.

"So, when I woke up, Ghira was waiting for me, and I was terrified of him. My parents would later come and take me away, and I guess the years removed me from your memory, but not Kali's." Alex finished, his voice sore and his head aching as he reached for every detail he could. Blake sat speechless through the whole story, and the guilt of having forgotten him was clear in her eyes, tears randomly coming out as he told her everything he could to make her remember. They shared a tense, quiet moment after he finished and Blake composed herself.

"This is, a lot and I mean truly a lot, to take in. But back to the thing that started this, why have you come here?" She asked, briefly changing the topic until she composed herself better.

"Simple, to find out why you left; convince you it was dumb, and bring you back to Beacon." Alex said, counting things off on his hand and staring up to the ceiling as he thought. Blake's jaw hung open at how tactless he had been, but decided to let it go for the time being.

"I couldn't face Yang after having to find out about Sun and I that way." She said, now finding her fingers SO interesting.

"Speaking of, is he here?"

"He's in another room, father refused to let him sleep near me after he followed me home. I intended to come alone." Blake growled the last part, and her fingers curled into a fist. "But that doesn't mean what I feel isn't real! He was there for me when all Yang did was assume and leave! She wouldn't have come back if you didn't come for her!"

"Almost like someone else in this room." Alex said, muttering but loud enough that he knew she'd hear.

"Why not just talk it over with the group? Why leave with someone outside of the team?" Alex pushed harder, keeping his temper in check. This was supposed to be a discussion but it was turning quickly into a fight and it needed to de-escalate quickly.

"It didn't feel like I could, Yang made that very clear."

"You know she didn't mean anything that meant you can't come back. We could always fix things like a team, but not if we run away from each other." Alex pleaded over and over after this, and Blake would retort over and over that she wasn't going back, no matter what.

"Sun cares for me! I'm not saying Yang doesn't, but when she left Sun stayed, he listened and took care of me. Why would I go back from this type of love and care." She said, now inches from his face and almost yelling.

"Because this is not love! Yes he's a great friend, but ask him anything, anything at all personal about you and he'll freeze, but Yang would answer without a single wrong answer!" Alex said back to her, seeing his reflection in her amber eyes staring back at him in disbelief. "And you know I'm right."

"So what! She knows me, what about how he actually treats me?!"

"And how about how Yang treats you, something was wrong and Sun showed up and first chance he got, he kissed you. She told me about when you were working yourself to an early grave. Where was Sun then?" This paused Blake, and Alex saw the doubt set in for a second, and went on the offensive.

"And above all, who actually wants to be around you, like all the time? I have yet to wake up to Yang not being within swinging distance of you, even when all you're doing is reading." Alex stressed this by waving his arms above his head and acting exasperated, but it was actually quite cute seeing that every morning, Yang keeping herself entertained while intertwined with Blake seemingly all day. The normally hyperactive Yang was always subdued and well behaved when Blake wanted quiet, and pleasantly annoying when she wanted Blake's attention. Alex wanted those days back so bad.

Blake stopped talking at this point and seemed deep in thought. No more tears, no more frustration, just honest thought. When she finally spoke, she did not smile, but Alex could tell this was a good thing.

"I need to talk to Sun."

"Of course."

"And you need to talk to father; he'll want to see you." Blake did smile at this point, even laughed a bit at how that meeting would go. Alex was a little afraid of meeting the man, but was looking forward to tomorrow for the first time in about a week.


	10. Chapter 10 - The Onset of Fall

The next morning was…interesting to say the very least for all involved. Alex was led to where he'd stay after finding Kali after his talk with Blake. She gave them privacy by staying in the nearby living room, she was sipping tea and reading from one of her novels, looking a little too much like Blake for Alex to be comfortable with it. His room was spacious, but minimalistic. His jacket and sword stayed in a corner of the room, nearby if needed, but not strapped to him as they had been for the past few days. It was relaxing not to have their weight on him. The bed he was borrowing swallowed him whole and soothed his aching bones; tired from travel, confronting Blake, and having a trip down memory lane with Kali, as soon as he hit the bed he was out like a light.

It was only when a weight hit his bed did he bolt up, and was met with Blake's soft hand to his chest, and her soothing voice calming him down. If he had a nightmare, he did not remember it, but he is usually never this jumpy. Her smile and kind eyes helped ground him, and he caught his breath.

"Breakfast is ready; I wanted to come get you. And, talk for a second, if that's alright with you." Blake said, unusually bashful, but he wouldn't stop her, even if she is keeping him from morning coffee. He nodded, and she took a deep breath and began to speak.

"I talked to Sun, asking him why he liked me, and it was just as you said. He kept going on about how pretty I am, but that was more or less it. Nothing about similar interests, just physical. It hurt, but I ended it right there and he stormed out this morning. He was heading back to Mistral to meet up with his team again, but I don't know if I'll see him again." Blake trailed off after that, and Alex places his hand on hers, earning her attention.

"I didn't intend for you to lose a potential friend, but this way I know you can be truly happy. I'm sorry he reacted like that."

"Its fine, though. Probably wouldn't have lasted if that's his response. Just to leave, it may seem hypocritical but that's a bit of a turn off for me." Blake let out another rare giggle and Alex was wondering if he should play the lottery when they get back to Vale.

"You going to be okay?"

"Maybe after our morning coffee." She said, a cute little repressed yawn barely escaping her, making Alex laugh this time. They both got ready, comfortable enough with each other already with changing around each other; Alex wore his normal dark long sleeve shirt and red pants ending in his sturdy steel toed boots, black of course, whereas Blake's outfit had changed. Her top was a cross hatched pattern that showed off her shoulders and collarbone, but hiding the cleavage as it went up into almost a turtleneck design, but it didn't hide her stomach at all; probably one of her most proud features was her toned and smooth stomach. She donned full jeans instead of her boy shorts and purple/black gradient tights combo, black jeans leading into her mid-thigh height boots that ended in a large heel that only accented her walk even more. To cover herself a bit, she donned a white trench coat that was split up the back and winging out the back of the jacket up to the back of her thighs. Alex whistled when she did a flourish to put on the new jacket; causing Blake to blush a bit.

"I liked the look of yours, so I got one for myself. A new day, new outfit and a fresh start, right?" Blake said, even though she was looking away, a small smile graced her lips. Alex grabbed his jacket and threw it over his shoulder, keeping it with him, but not wearing it quite yet, the heat from outside seeping into the house already so he held off on it. Blake led him out of his room and towards where they would be eating breakfast, out on a balcony outside the regular dining room, with a great view of morning dawning over the village.

In the center of the large patio was a round table, coffee steaming out of its jug with mugs nearby sat in the center of the table, it's scent highlighting the caramel added to it, and sugar to the side of the porcelain setup. The tables around it were large and made of oak, but more importantly, empty.

Alex grabbed a seat and poured a scalding cupful and added his large amount of sugar to the caramel mix, Blake sitting next to him and enjoying a black cup of coffee and gripping the mug to warm her fingers a bit. The birds overhead chirping their songs away, the breezing sounding through the trees surrounding the back of the property, and neither of them saying a word.

Eventually, the doors leading out to this haven opened, revealing a large man, bits of decorative armor overlaying his large jacket, slightly baggy pants tucked into combat boots, and long hair leading into a thick beard, all maintained, yet somehow still wild. His amber eyes locked on the two, and Alex froze under the gaze. He was being weighed, measured and scrutinized, and both of them knew it. Rather than wait for it, Alex stood and addressed the man directly.

"Hello, Mr. Belladonna, it's good to see you again." Alex said, and Ghira froze, his piercing gaze giving away to emotion.

"I could hardly believe that Kali was right; you have come back, boy." Ghira said, a smile finally breaking through that tough as stone visage of his. The tension truly disappeared when kali appeared carrying food for everyone on platters, and empty plates for everyone, the breakfast feast beginning in earnest. Spreads of bacon, pancakes, eggs, hash browns, you name it, Kali went all out on their meal. During their feasting, the odd question was thrown out to get the Belladonna's used to this new Alex, and the inevitable question came up.

"Alex, forgive me for asking, but your ears and tail…" kali led with hesitation. She probably thought that Alex had not noticed that she had been glancing to where on his head they should have still been.

"Mom!" Blake cut in. She's heard this story before, and knew that Alex didn't like retelling it. But they were the closest thing to family he had left.

"It's okay, Blake; they deserve to know."

One story later, and Kali was in tears, and Ghira was trembling with rage. They were silent for a few seconds, felt like an eternity, before they managed to compose themselves and continue the conversation.

The rest of their breakfast was plagued with 'what if's and 'wish I was there', but Alex still enjoyed reconnecting with them all the same. When the food was finally gone, and Ghira was pleasantly surprised that Alex had maintained his appetite and could still out eat him, they retired back to the interior of their large estate, sitting around the living room and sharing idle conversation.

Their fun was broken up only by the sound of something crashing near their location, sending up a plume of smoke and scattered dirt that bounced off the screen walls. Rushing outside, Blake having her weapon drawn already and Alex's fists encompassed in fire, they were shocked to say the least at the sight before them: one of Beacon's lockers. The numbers on the locker revealed that it was owned by Alex, himself, but he couldn't remember summoning it, or that they could go this far anyway.

Approaching it, he was ready for anything as he threw the heavy metal door open, and paused at what was inside. Blake peeked over his shoulder and stifled a laugh, hiding behind her small hand as she walked away from the sight.

Inside were two items, neither of which were familiar to Alex in the slightest; a letter and a new weapon that seemed familiar but didn't ring any major bells with him. He grabbed the letter from the shelf where it sat, and the red lettering, messy to say the least and spelled out in red pen, was what he assumed was Ruby's name. The contents of the letter were even more rushed, probably from her excitement.

 _Hey,_

 _Got tired of waiting to show you this when you got back, so I decided to send it to you. But then I remembered that I don't know where you are! So I went to Ozpin, and thankfully he felt the same excitement I did while holding this sword and felt that you should have it as soon as possible, so he pulled some strings and found your scroll's location; hopefully you still have it._

He could feel Ruby's nervousness attempt to eclipse her excitement, but the current situation proves that she overcame it.

 _So, I have been working on this in secret since our day together, the idea too fun sounding to wait for the chaos of late to wear down, and I finally completed it! So, hope you like it!_

 _-Ruby_

Alex laughed to himself, wondering what really goes on in her head to make her go to these lengths just for him, just for a sword.

He grabbed the carefully wrapped hilt, noting the soft leather that hit his palm and fit comfortably, the length of the handle extending past a foot, but the blade easily went the length of his body. The blade was stained a ruby red, and featured several rose engravings that Alex could tell that Ruby worked hard to do by hand rather than have a machine trace a drawing, the small imperfections standing out as her signature. The engravings were covered in a darker shade of red stain to make them subtly stand out, and the hilt of the sword grabbing his attention. It seemed to be a regular rectangular hilt, but closer look showed more of the rose engravings, but they seemed to glow with different dust sparkled over them, making their colors shift every second from red, to blue, to purple.

The sword for all it's size felt incredibly light, and the amount of care put into its creation touched Alex deeply. Short of, well, any present that Ada was able to get for him somehow, this was the farthest anyone had gone to get him something they thought he'd like, and the fact that they helped design it made it even more personal and special. This was what he had made with Ruby, something that they would share for as long as this sword exists.

A button near the hilt of the sword, gold in design, urged him to push it, just to see what surprises she packed into this sword. As soon as his thumb grazed it, he felt a warmth coming from his hand, similar to when he would encase his hand in fire, and the sword immediately reacted.

The already long handle buried it's burning rose pommel into the dirt and extended to well beyond Alex's head, a trigger popping out of this new handle similar to that of an assault rifle complete with a hair trigger. The blade, now suspended above him had curved to form a deadly looking scythe, and at the very top of the blade was what looked like a barrel, large in size and sticking out from the top for almost half a foot.

Looking over the weapon, he noticed a long slot, most likely for the clip, which thankfully a few copies of were buried in the locker as well, and loading it completed the look. She had basically made him his own version of her Crescent Rose, personalized for him. Pressing the button again folded the weapon back together, even capturing the clip as it and it's ammunition folded into the handle and were absorbed by the blade that had straightened out again.

Alex had a smile a mile long, and promptly attached it to the magnet built into the back of his shirt, enjoying the lack of weight, but the feeling of having a weapon brought him security; the fact that it smelled of gunpowder, steel and slightly of her now that his nose was on full display helped a little too.

He grabbed the letter again, and a pen hidden away in a bag that has occupied the locker for longer than it should have, he wrote:

 _I love it._

With this, he sent the locker back towards it's home, hoping and predicting that Ruby was waiting for it to come back, a nervous smile on her face, and how it would light up when she got his message.

Heading back inside, the Belladonna's were watching from inside the kitchen, out of one of it's windows. Belladonna was laughing as Alex walked in, managing to catch her saying "Of course it's a scythe!" when he got their attention. Ghira walked around him, taking in the sight and nodded.

"It fits you well, boy." He said, finally finished with his appraisal. Alex smiled, up until something important came to his mind: what to do with his now outdated sword? It was a part of his life for a long time, and the thought of throwing it away brought about a bit of rage, but then again, the answer was just as easy to think of.

"I'd like to leave my other sword here, for you guys." Alex said looking around to Ghira and kali. They shared a look, and smiled into their nods, going on to say that they'd be happy to, that it'd be like having a bit of him home even while he's away.

He and Blake would spend a few more days with her parent's, enjoying the company and the feelings of a home long lost, before they had to head back to Beacon.

The parents followed them out to the airship, almost getting on with them much to the anger of the attendant responsible for tickets, and said a few emotional goodbyes, Kali crying for the umpteenth time that day, but at least this one was happy, and they promised to meet up for holidays, and that Alex would always have a home there. When the airship finally lifted off, Alex was feeling homesick, but Blake was shut in on herself again.

"What's wrong?" Alex said, trying to pull her out of whatever thoughts were hurting her.

"What if the team doesn't want me back?"

In response, Alex poked her in the nose and laughed when she went cross-eyed and glared at him, then he replied.

"That's silly and you know it. They may be upset, but they'll also have missed you something fierce. The worst you'll have to deal with is Weiss making you make up all the homework you missed."

"Is it too late to go back?"

-Several hours later-

The airship landed at Beacon, and the familiar site of the repaired castle did nothing to help Blake's anxiety, her ears drooping and her eyes glued to the floor. Had Alex not helped her off their airship via hand on her back and a gentle push, she might not have moved. Standing near where they were disembarking, was the rest of Team RWBY flanked by Professor Ozpin himself, all of them waving as the duo approached. Quick as he could, Alex focused on his face and hands, willing his eyes back to their concealed state, and his claws back to human looking hands before he got too close to his team.

Ruby immediately jumped onto Alex, pulling him into a big hug and gushing about how the sword looked strapped to his back, and yes she did get his note.

Blake approached Yang first, and neither said one word for a few moments, Blake staring back with sad amber eyes barely holding back tears and shaking where she stood; whereas Yang was glaring at the poor cat Faunus, her eyes a pure rage red and her fist balled up and shaking violently, and her golden hair was slightly unkempt, but still gave off a golden glow and the odd spark of flame. Everyone stood there, waiting for the inevitable explosion, but it never came.

Yang's eyes blinked once, and were reverted to a cloudy version of their normal purple, and tears started to pour down her cheeks, only a few as she was trying to hold them back, but it wasn't working too well for her. The next instant, she pulled Blake into a deep, one armed hug and the floodgates opened, Yang crying into a stunned Blake's shoulder, asking her over and over not to leave again.

Alex set Ruby down and regarded both Weiss and Ruby.

"What did I miss?" Alex asked, pointing at Yang with his thumb.

"Oh, you know just the trick or treating. But doing that seemed to make something click with Yang, and now she's like this. It's still kinda confusing, but hey; if it works right?" Ruby said, trying to recount when and where Yang changed, but gave up on it surprisingly quickly.

"Or right; Happy birthday, by the way!" Alex said, patting Ruby on the shoulder as she smiled up at him. Weiss was not that happy though.

"You absolute DOLT! Why didn't you say it was your birthday?!" Weiss fumed, breaking up their moment and practically shaking Ruby. Alex waved as Weiss then dragged Ruby away, saying something about getting her the best present she ever had and Ruby begging her not to. Ozpin would take this moment to walk up to Alex, and almost startled him with how quiet the man was.

"So, I think everything worked out for your team?" A sip of his mug told Alex it was okay to respond.

"Yeah, Yang and Blake still need to actually talk things out, but I think things will be just fine." Alex caught himself smiling, but decided to just let it stay.

"Good, because come tomorrow, I have scheduled you and Ms. Belladonna a few hours required in the study hall to catch up on your missed assignments. For now, enjoy the festivities; Team JNPR has thrown a Halloween party in the cafeteria and they would love to see you all." He said 'all' loud enough for the bumblebee pair to hear, and to break apart long enough to show they heard him. At his point he took in Yang's outfit, a yellow and black spandex full body spandex number, with a black strip going down the sides to break up the solid yellow color and the fake katana strapped to her back.

From memory, Ruby was dressed up as a more innocent looking Red Riding Hood, complete with frilly blouse, a proper corset and a real skirt as opposed to a combat skirt, ending in black leggings that went to a pair of much less buckle-y pair of boots in contrast with her normal pair. Weiss went the royal route, wearing an expensive looking blue dress, elegant in design with a plume of frilly lace cloth covering her cleavage, her skin seeming even more pale from the foundation used, professionally done makeup, and a proper crown on her head.

Alex and Blake shared a look, then hurried back to the dorm with Yang in tow to get into their costumes.

A few minutes later, they were standing at the door leading into the cafeteria, and Alex was stuck looking at Blake's outfit. It is to point out that once she had stopped wearing her bow, she was more comfortable with who she was, but this may have been much. She was wearing a skin tight leather body suit, open enough to show cleavage, but not too far as to violate dress code, and on her hip was a lasso in the shape of a cat's tail and her gloves were akin to cat's claws.

Alex went to rival Ruby's outfit, having discussed previously to pair up in a way. To her Little Red, he was her Big Bad Wolf, a full werewolf outfit covering his body, it's black fur a funny mimic to what usually surrounds his eyes, and a scary looking wolf man head overlaying his, and large Grimm-like claws covering his hands. It was stifling, but Ruby wanted it, so he'd grin and bear it, even play it up with randomly growling at a few passerby, even Yang when she wasn't paying attention. At one point, he even howled at the moon whenever it peaked through the clouds, earning a chuckle from the duo accompanying him.

The party itself didn't need the full cafeteria by this point, not many people remaining, but Ruby and Weiss were there with Team JNPR, as well as Team CVFY, who just showed up in their regular outfits but were chatting up the younger teams just the same. As they approached, Ruby saw Alex's outfit and proceeded to aggressively hug him again, earning a laugh from Yang as she used her one incredibly strong hand to pick Ruby off of him after he had fallen over

"Let the man breathe, it can't be cool in there and he doesn't need your sugar crazed body heat!" Yang admonished, but it was hidden behind chuckles and Ruby let out a begrudged 'fine', rolling her large silver eyes as she was set down. Alex got back to his feet and patted Ruby on the head with a large claw, bringing back a smile and earning a laugh from her older sister.

They mingled in with the remaining teams, Ruby and Coco having an in-depth conversation about what chocolate is the best above all else, and it was getting heated quickly. Jaune and Pyrrha were staring out at the full moon through one of the windows that fills the walls and stretches to the ceiling, enjoying the quiet moment together in their own world. Nora and Ren, seemingly opposites, were dressed as an outlet and plug combo, with Ren being the plug, and they were staying near the food as Nora tried to see how much of the pizza she could eat. Asking Ren would show that she was on her fourth pizza, and wasn't slowing down.

Weiss grabbed Blake and Yang and went off to a darker corner of the cafeteria, and was having her own in-depth conversation, one that Yang seemed to not be enjoying and Blake was interested in if not a bit worried, leaving Alex alone to wander, so he did. His travels eventually had him grow bored of the party and leave, not disturbing anyone and head back to the dorm room. There he slipped out of the Wolf outfit and grabbed his jacket and sword, and went to the roof of their dorm building.

The smell of fall, and the sight of a still burning Vale filled his view, and he remembered back when he would take Ada trick or treating, her cute outfit becoming a common wear for her whenever they did anything together. Her eyes lighting up at the candy that she would haul home every time, the way she begrudgingly shared with him, but still wore a smile as they ate enough to be sick the next day.

During his memories, he had grabbed his sword and was staring at it deeply, taking in the floral engraving, the level of detail, and how holding it made him feel like he was at home again. This sword being the culmination of him trying to grow closer to his new team, but never forgetting his old team.

Before he could visit that avenue of lovely memories, the door opened behind him, showing his team standing there, still in costume.

"We got worried when you left without telling us." Ruby clarified, noticing how shocked Alex seemed to be. Alex nodded and looked back to the view out ahead of him, but this time he was joined by his team, all surrounding him in their pairs, Yang and Blake on his right holding hands and standing close enough together that Blake could rest her head on her shoulder and tickle her cheek with her feline ears; and Weiss and Ruby standing on his left, Ruby holding Weiss from behind in a protective hug that seemed a little uncomfortable for them, but they were making steps. Not a word had to be said, they had found each other and made it work, reciprocated, and grew even closer into proper relationships, and Alex felt happy for them.

Who knows what would happen come tomorrow, but for tonight, they were reunited again and standing strong all considered.

"Hey Ruby, trick or treat." Alex said, glancing over at her. The glare she had actually scared him a bit.

"Try and take my candy, and you won't see the sun come up."

"Point taken."


	11. Chapter 11 - Date Night

Alex's slumber was interrupted by a lot of hustle and bustle around the dorm room. When he opened his eyes, Blake and Yang were prancing around in not much more than their underwear (clearly goo comfortable with his presence), trying to find the best outfit and critiquing each other. More specifically Yang was holding up outfits and trying to get Blake to calmly just pick one and to not be so serious about things, which served to only wind up Blake even more. Glancing over at the other two, Weiss was dressed at least, a flowing blue dress over white leggings all of which lacked her traditional snowflake design, but still looked nice on her and she let her hair flow free of its normal ponytail. Ruby, however didn't have a shirt on, holding several over her torso to try to find the right one, but at least she wasn't having a Blake sized freak out. To say that he was confused was an understatement.

"First, can people put clothes on, second can someone tell me why it's a madhouse so early in the morning?" Alex said as he sat up, holding his freshly aching head in his sweaty palm, the room abnormally warm this morning.

"It's past noon, Alex." Weiss huffed as she covered Ruby's form before she could turn around to look at Alex, Blake and Yang disappearing into the bathroom at that same instant.

"Second, we're trying to get ready for all of our first dates, and everyone's worried about being perfect." She finished, holding up a sheet that blocked all but Ruby's head as she gave an innocent smile overlayed with an adorable blush.

"Oh, okay. With who?" He was still awake, so it was to be forgiven.

"Well, I'll be taking Ruby out to dinner and a movie that she wanted to see, then finding a belated birthday present for her." Ruby huffed at the mention of the present, but decided to just let it go. "I don't know what Yang has planned for Blake, but I think we should pray for her." Weiss said, sneaking peaks over the sheet and having her pristine porcelain skin tainted by a faint blush of the cheeks, Ruby completely unaware as she took her time finding the right shirt.

"Oh. Have fun." With that Alex dropped back to his heavenly pillow and shut his eyes again, and felt the room start to spin. He found himself praying that the bumblebee colored pair would be done with the bathroom soon at this rate. Looking up at the ceiling, he realized it was blurred, and the limits of his vision covered in black shadow. His head was pounding and it hurt to breathe and move, pretty much anything hurt him; he had a cold set upon him hard.

"You alright, Alex?" A cheery voice sounded from his right, a head of blonde hair standing above him, her hand on his forehead and a thoughtful look on her face. He attempted to speak only to be cut off by her gasping and calling the team closer, all surrounding his bed and staring down at him with worried looks.

"Alright team, we got a classic cold here, but it seems even worse. He may have the flu. Ruby, you go get him a pitcher of cold water; Weiss, find the cold medicine in the first aid kit; Blake, if you are willing, he's going to need some books." She listed off, receiving a nod from each respective member. Alex was not going to have any of this however.

"No! You are going to go have the time of your lives and I'll take care of myself. I'll be fine." He growled, trying to sit up in his bed, and Yang pushing him back down easily.

"You can barely stand." Ruby said, hands clutched in her chest and the worry seeping into her tone.

"I don't have to stand, I need to stay right here and sleep it off, I'll be fine and you guys need to go do whatever you had ready and not worry about me." Alex waved off their worry and this would continue for the next few minutes, but Alex's stubbornness won the day when Weiss gave up.

"Alright, I'll get you the cold medicine though at the least and let us set you up with water and food then we'll go; deal?" Her hands rested on her slim hips and her tone left no room for debate. Tired of talking, all Alex could do was give them a thumbs up and lay his head into a more comfortable spot on the pillow. By the time they returned with the items, he was out like a light and they crept out of the room.

Arriving in Vale, Team RWBY set up a rendezvous point at a nearby fountain, simple in design but massive in size, and went their separate ways.

 **Ruby Rose**

Ruby was already a nervous wreck by the time they reached the designated restaurant. The whole time that they were traveling to this lavish facility, she had been racking her brain for how she thought she was supposed to act on a date, never really considering being on a date during her training to become a huntress, and came up with nothing. She was so focused on this that she forgot to do even the basic things, like talking or holding hands.

The restaurant was huge from the outside and seemed to only get bigger once your though the metal double doors. The ceilings reached up three stories high, and were decorated with extravagant rose gold chandeliers, and the empty parts of the ceiling were painted into an extravagant whirl of colors depicting angels fighting the Grimm. The walls were adorned with larger than they needed to be paintings, each holding either simple paintings of people or landscapes or more actions of gods against the Grimm, showing a stunningly depicted story about the first Huntsman facing the Grimm bravely in battle during the formation of the kingdoms.

Weiss took it on herself to announce their reservation, and a group of people were immediately waiting on their every need, crowding Ruby and making her anxiety much worse now being barked at by several unknown people asking what wine she wanted, causing her to babble a bit at the sensory overload. Weiss managed to save her, asking for some unpronounceable wine that she thought Ruby would like and waving away the rest after getting their water and menu's, and Ruby sat silently in her chair, hands pressed into her lap and staring at the table.

"Ruby, are you okay?" Weiss' voice broke Ruby from her stupor and she nodded.

"Yeah, just not used to stuff like this, you know?" Ruby admitted.

"Sorry, it's normal for me and I did what I thought would be good. Perhaps I misjudged." Weiss' expression fell a bit, and Ruby managed to notice and reached over for Weiss' hand that was gripping the table mat in a tight fist.

"It's alright, now that I've calmed down, this place is amazing!" Weiss let out a small smile and locked eyes with Ruby. They've only been dating for a day, but Weiss can't help but feel giddy staring at her leader made girlfriend; her goofy grin sending butterflies through her stomach and her addicting laugh forcing a small laugh from Weiss whenever she caught it. She had it bad for Ruby since they met in the Emerald Forest, but if anyone asked she'd deny it outright. She'd deny trying to subtly hint at Ruby for months that they should go out, even resorting to flirting with Neptune to try and get some action out of Ruby; however, it was the direct approach that won.

The gift that Weiss had in mind for Ruby was not a material item, but it was a conversation had alone with her, laying things out plainly for the younger girl; explaining how long she'd had the infatuation and what she liked and then backtracking for a bit when she thought that Ruby would refuse, then breaking down into babbling when she started to gush everything good about Ruby and freaking out that she was starting to get creepy. Ruby shut her up with a kiss that tasted of strawberries and chocolate, and a kind smile as she admitted to liking Weiss as well.

A calm silence fell on them for a second before Ruby spoke up.

"I know we're on a date, but I'm worried for Alex. I've never seen him sick before."

"I don't think he lets us see him sick, Ruby." Weiss said, gripping Ruby's hand. She was worried for Alex too, but she needed to keep Ruby here with her or the night might not get past dinner before they were darting back to the dorm. "But I'm sure he's fine. I think he'd say something if it was serious."

"But what if he's not okay and just didn't want to say anything?" Ruby said growing more distressed, and her large silver eyes pleading with Weiss to understand. Weiss sighed and pulled out her scroll.

"Hang on." Was all that Weiss said before she was typing faster than even Ruby can. After a few seconds, she set her scroll down on the table.

"Alright, so I've called in a family doctor that stays here in Vale. He'll be dropping in on Alex to check him out and help him." Weiss said, and Ruby seemed to relax for a bit. Apologies were made, but they moved on just fine, even ordering food that Weiss had to help Ruby pronounce, which she did with a smile and was finding Ruby's floundering adorable.

 **Alex**

Alex was passed out on the bed, ignoring the world when there was a knock on the door to their dorm room. Uttering a few curses under his breath, he dragged himself to the door, using anything he could to brace himself and opened the door. On the other side of the door was a short elderly man in a very professional looking pure alabaster suit and carrying an equally white suitcase. His horn rimmed glasses adorned his elderly face and he was noticeably shorter than even Ruby, and his chin sharp as his pale skin almost blended in with his suit. Platinum blonde hair on top of his head completed his white blue persona.

"Can I help you?" Alex growled out, he was enjoying his rest when he finally managed to fall asleep. The man pushed his glasses higher up on his nose in response.

"Ms. Schnee sent me to check up on you, may I come in?" His deep voice bounced off the walls around Alex, and made what was left of his Faunus ears ache from the unwanted noise, or maybe it was the migraine, who knows?

"It's alright, I don't need-" A large palm was raised up to his face to silence him.

"Her words were Ruby's worry is ruining our date, don't let him turn you away." He stated simply, and Alex felt guilty for a second. He didn't want to hinder their dates, but it turns out that it didn't work in the slightest.

"Fine, do what you need to." Alex conceded, limping back to the bed, but stopping short. Looking down, he found he was floating in the air, glancing back at the doctor, he noticed his palm glowing a dull silver.

"I'm glad you were agreeable, Ms. Schnee wasn't as a child, so I had to use my power similarly to this. Your bed is full of germs making my job harder, so I'll be suspending you like this. My semblance makes my medical skills even better so you'll be in good hands." Alex gulped when he realized he was powerless against this man that didn't even come up to his chest. The Schnee's were a scary bunch.

 **Yang Xiao Long**

Assuming that Yang was a shy girl would've been preposterous. She was beautiful and she knew it, but she also had a kind heart, but something about Blake turned the normally confident Blonde into a blubbering mess that was blushing so hard her heart was getting the biggest workout of the day. Blake seemed unfazed by how she was affected Yang, even seemed to be enjoying it. Blake was dressed in a simple white button up that was undone sinfully low, showing off the shape of her just enough to catch Yang staring, other's too but she only cared that Yang was looking, and skin tight black jeans that highlighted her hips in the right places, and ended in heeled boots that only went ankle high. Yang's outfit could compete just fine though. She went with a pearl colored halter top exposing her sculpted back and enough side boob to get Blake's attention as well, and ended it with black jean shorts that looked like the legs were torn off and black tennis shoes.

They were walking down a pleasantly empty street in Vale lined with dust and weapon shops, but their focus was on a library further down the road, one that Yang had picked because an author was giving out signed copies of his next book. The fact that it was the author of Blake's 'Ninja's of love' story had nothing to do with it at all. She couldn't wait to see Blake's eyes light up, and maybe a bit of blush on her cheeks as she jumped into her arms and-

"Yang, you're drooling." Blake chuckled, pulling Yang from her daze, making her realize she had a goofy grin on her face and she was, in fact, drooling a bit. Yang fixed herself as Blake continued laughing, and Yang wouldn't make eye contact at the thoughts they both knew she was having. By this point, the shop they wanted was coming into view, a re-opened Tukson's book trade ran by some random guy that obviously wasn't Tuckson but no one really cared. Blake's brow furrowed a bit.

"Yang, you aren't really a reader, why pick here?" Blake asked, still walking but almost cautious due to Yang's pranks whenever they would go to a bookstore in the past.

"You'll see!" Yang sang out and picked up her pace.

 **Alex**

Being floated in the air was bad enough, he always preferred his feet solidly on the ground, but this was ridiculous after the poking and touching started. He was asked the common questions, such as 'does this hurt' and it always did, then blood pressure and flashlight in the eyes which were especially annoying for his Faunus eyes, still working even if they were 'hidden'. Finally, the doctor had given him an injection, which in his tired state just annoyed him more than anything, and set him back down on the floor. Alex's arm was still sore from the shot and testing, but he was thankful it was finally over. The doctor said a curt goodbye and left as quickly as he came, leaving Alex alone in the dorm room, now fully awake but feeling a bit better if he was being honest.

Resigning himself to being awake, he decided to try and get some errands done around the dorm, laundry and cleaning up some of his general mess that Weiss was quick to point out.

During his errands, something went wrong; he wasn't able to control his Faunus traits. No matter how hard he focused, he couldn't get his eyes to look human again, and his claws were constantly retracting and shooting out, and his nose was picking up on scents from seemingly forever away. Panic set in and he wasn't able to focus on anything anymore as his instincts kicked into high gear and his heart rate skyrocketed. At this rate his heart would stop. His attention was drawn to the door again, he had to find the doctor and force him to fix this; or he's not going to die alone.

 **Ruby Rose**

The dinner was lovely, even if ruby didn't know what she was eating, and they fell into small talk again, getting to know each other better and finding out what they weren't comfortable with yet. Turns out that Weiss is very affectionate, but not in public, barely being okay with holding hands. Ruby on the other hand was a cuddle monster at pretty much all times and was perfectly okay with that, so they agreed to meet in the middle and keep it subtle in public, but Ruby can have what she wanted when they were alone.

Paying the bill and leaving the restaurant, they continued their walk under the afternoon sun, letting the sun heat them up under the seasonal breeze making it all rather pleasant. They would stop in at the occasional store to browse, but were content with just being near each other and holding hands. Weiss seemed nervous about something, but she couldn't quite narrow it down. Thankfully, Ruby didn't notice so she had a moment to try and think it over, when her scroll buzzed again.

 _The patient has been taken care of. The Faunus won't be an issue on your date anymore._

An all too familiar chill ran up her spine, and the panic set in. She had forgotten that Alex was a Faunus in hiding, much like Blake was, and sending a Schnee doctor might not have been the best move. Her thumb moved in a blur as she summoned a taxi, her free hand gripping Ruby's tightly and making her wince.

"Call Yang and Blake, get them back to Beacon immediately. Alex is in trouble." Weiss commanded, and without a moment's hesitation, Ruby was calling the other two.

 **Yang Xiao Long**

To say that her plan didn't work was completely false. As soon as they got into the bookstore, and the signs came into Blake's view, she was literally vibrating with excitement and talking a mile a minute about how amazing Yang was for getting them in, and missing the rush too was a bonus due to how late they showed up. Blake got her copy of Ninja's of Love, and it was signed as well, and her meeting with the author was mostly him chuckling and Blake a nervous wreck. After answering a nearly endless list of questions from Blake, they parted ways with the author and stood outside. Blake cracked open the book immediately and was reading, but still managing to talk with Yang and couldn't stop smiling. Her book was thankfully everything she wanted, story expanding to points she was predicting and happy with, and pleasant smut that was actually tasteful instead of written out porn dialogue.

Their revelry was broken when Yang's scroll blared out her favorite 'Armed and Ready' song of the month. Pulling it out of her pocket showed Ruby's face, and she immediately picked it up, feeling worried for her little sister.

"Ruby, what's wrong?" Immediately serious, it was jarring for Blake, but she put her book down and gave her full attention. Ruby's voice was muffled even to Blake, but Yang's face contorted between worry and anger. She announced that they'll meet them back at beacon and waved down a cab, the disgruntled cabby cheering up when Yang threatened him with grievous damage to what made him a man if they weren't in Beacon in the next five minutes. When Yang finally sat back down after her threats, Blake was finally able to ask what was going on.

Yang took a deep breath, then rapid fired out what had happened. From what Weiss had gathered from her doctor, she had sent him to check on Alex and his cold, but the doctor had shared views on Faunus alongside her father, and she had forgotten that he was a Faunus. The doctor went to check on him like asked, but his shot that was supposed to be a cure all made using his medical semblance and general medicine knowledge, but when he noticed that Alex had larger than average fangs, and his nails were similar to dulled claws, his training and instruction under Jaques Schnee told him to end this Faunus that was near his daughter. A simple action he had done many times before, and Weiss had unintentionally sent him to her teammate.

Hearing what happened; Blake's eyes were wide with fear. She was made painfully aware of what the doctor could do during her time in the White Fang, other friends she managed to make that got caught during their missions were given to the doctor; they would never be heard from again. She was still coming to terms that this man was the personal family doctor to the Schnee's by the time they reached the airship back to Beacon. A few more minutes and they'd be on the landing pad.

 **Alex**

Alex tore through the dormitory, his claws helping him get out of the dorm room more than the door handle, and his thoughts still racing but nothing coherent. All he could see was the doctor's face, and a sense of betrayal that Weiss would send this man to him. The other students still on property stayed out of his way when they saw the feral man tearing through the halls. His breath caught in his chest and it burned, and his mouth tasted of copper from him gritting his teeth and his fangs dug into his bottom lip. He tried to get the scent of the man, but it was impossible to focus enough to narrow it down.

Someone did cross his path: Pyrrha, and she was shocked by what she saw. When she came across him, following the sounds thinking it was a Beowulf that managed to make it's way into the school, her heart dropped to see him. His eyes framed by matted black fur, the autumn moons shining through them, his fangs bared and ready to bite and his claws digging into his palms. She did not draw her weapon, but instead held her hands out in front of him, and he backed away and bowed his head low.

"Alex, let us help you! If you go to the infirmary we might be able to help!" Pyrrha pleaded, but Alex couldn't hear her. His gaze landed on her, and he let out a blood curdling scream that sounded like the roar of an animal backed into a corner trying to intimidate it's way out. Pyrrha winced as the sound reached her ears and covered them; then Alex charged at her. Operating on instinct, Pyrrha grabbed her weapon.

 **Weiss Schnee**

Weiss was shaking when the airship carrying the rest of their team landed. Ruby hadn't said one word to her when they broke off their date, and that didn't look like it was going to end any time soon. Weiss was wondering if her girlfriend blamed her, thought she did this out of anger for the Faunus and decided to single out Alex. None of this was voiced as Weiss beat herself up inside, but Ruby's thoughts were of only trying to find their friend before he did something they'd all regret.

The airship docked, and the landing bay opened showing a very angry Yang standing next to Blake who lacked any emotion at all. As soon as the door opened, Yang was running up to Ruby, with Blake close on their heels, but she cut off from Yang when they drew close and approached Weiss.

"We've been friends for a long time, so I'm hoping this was all a big misunderstanding on your part." Blake said, coldly. Weiss nodded her head quickly and began to explain.

"I wasn't thinking about Alex as a Faunus, I just wanted to help. Whatever the doctor did, was his own doing. I didn't even consider this might happen." Weiss said, choking back tears at everything falling down on her. Just an hour ago she was over the moon, now she was scared she may have just killed a teammate that's only been good to her. Yang walked into her vision and placed a warm hand on her shoulder.

"That's all we need to hear. Now we need to either find the doctor, or find Alex and get him help." Yang had turned to Ruby at this point, and Ruby went into full leader mode.

Her team split into two groups; Weiss and Ruby would track down the doctor, and Blake and Yang would find Alex and get him help.

Weiss and Ruby combed through the Beacon Grounds, asking if anyone has seen a man matching the doctors appearance, but no one had anything until they came across Professor Port. The large man with the awesome mustache welcomed them, but he was lacking the usual cheery demeanor he was known for while telling his hours long stories.

"Professor, have you seen a man in white, all white going around? He's a doctor for my family, and we need to find him." Weiss began, her professional tone hiding how frantic she was.

"Yes, Ms. Schnee, he's been detained by Ozpin and Glynda, his escapades for your father well known by the faculty here. If he's here, nothing good can come from it. I was going to join the meeting they were having with him when you came up." He said, his voice oddly serious, hinting at a bit of history with this man. Ruby stepped forward and stared up at the elderly man with determined silver eyes.

"We need to talk to him, our friend is counting on what we can learn from him." Port pondered for a second, above all the safety of his students always took precedence, but he also knew that Team RWBY would fight their way to him if they had to. They've gone to extreme lengths, facing insane odds to save their teammates before, so this would be no different. So, seeing no other option, he led them to the meeting point.

The office was simple, just a couch with arm chairs and a small table, sitting around it was Ozpin himself, flanked by Glynda who was looking impatient and irritated. When Port walked in with the two students, her mood did not improve, but her understanding was instant. Her and Ozpin had been fielding calls from other teachers trying to restrain Alex, and she wanted answers, but had to wait for Port.

When Port entered the room, he and the doctor locked eyes for a tense moment, Port freezing in his steps and the doctor donning a knowing smile that marred his smooth pale face, and he wiped away a stray bang that fell into his face back into its platinum blonde matte that fell down the back of head, then the doctor spoke.

"Can we hurry this along now that we're all here? I do have other patients to see to." His dismissive tone moved Port out of his stunned state, and he moved to the front of the doctor and glared at him, unsettling almost everyone in the room that Port was capable of true anger.

"Dr. Merlot." He growled.

 **Blake Belladonna**

Yang and Blake tore through the inside of Beacon in a black and yellow blur, dodging students and furniture until they came across a scene that stopped them immediately.

Alex stood over Pyrrha, both of them carrying marks of a heavy battle, cuts and bruises and torn clothes, other students ringing them and noticeably afraid of Alex. He had his claws out and they did have blood on them, and Pyrrha lay beneath him, holding him back with the flat part of her spear, still trying to not hurt her friend in his rabid state. Her immaculate gold armor ripped apart and her clothes taking damage too, she was outright missing one of her thigh high boots, and her normally pristine red hair was matted and frayed. Her left eye, normally a clean emerald pool of kindness, was swollen shut and her lip had been split. Still she fought on just to keep him at bay.

All it took was a look between Blake and her partner before they jumped into action. Yang ran up behind Alex, wrapping her arm around his core and slammed him to the ground hard enough to daze him, then freeing her arm to put him in a choke hold. Blake, however, ran to Pyrrha's side and was trying to give her some aid, while finding out what Alex had been doing.

While they talked, Yang fought on with Alex, struggling to keep the hold on due to it's improper one armed nature. All it took was a stray bite from Alex on her arm to knock her loose, and he threw her off of him. She managed to recover and get to her feet in time to see Alex staring at her with eyes full of bloodlust, but at the same time, recognition.

He did not charge her, he stood there growling and flexing his fingers, but he did not charge her. Blake sat next to Pyrrha watching on as the two stared at each other, wondering what could be going on in his head.

Alex struggled with the voice in his head, the one screaming for him to rip and tear all that are in his way, to feast when it was done. This was Yang in front of him, the same friend that he's managed to grow so close to in the previous months, had helped her overcome her arm being damaged with constant sparring and training. And here he was, attacking her.

Yang was ready for anything, predicting movements ahead of time and ready to knock him out if that's what it took. So she was surprised to say the least when Alex just sat down. He was still growling and staring at her, but he just sat down. She kept her guard up, but she approached him, slowly at first, before kneeling down in front of him.

"Alex, what's going on? Talk to me." She said softly. Alex stared for a second, before his eyes closed.

"I can't control it, it's like whatever makes me a Faunus is taking over." He said, struggling out every word, but he was able to say his piece. Alex was looking away, when Yang enacted her plan. Quicker than Blake saw her ever move, Yang delivered the fasted haymaker she could, her hand almost disappearing through the air, and it found it's home in Alex's jaw. His head whipped around violently, and he fell back; and the growling and huffing stopped. Alex was still, and no longer able to hurt anyone.

"Let's get him to the infirmary, then we'll find Weiss." Yang said. Blake nodded and helped Pyrrha to her feet, while Yang hefted Alex over her shoulder, taking them both to the infirmary.


	12. Chapter 12 - Standing Tall

**A/N: This chapter was a lot shorter than the last upload and for far too long for those that have waited for it, but I wanted to get this arc over with so I can continue the story as well as give our heroes a break in the next story, but wrap it up in a way that I liked. I appreciate you reading and we'll be back with the fun stuff come next chapter, but I hope you still enjoy reading this. Please leave a review and let me know what you think!**

* * *

Alex was safely strapped to an infirmary bed, still knocked out cold by Yang's punch when they last saw him, Yang and Blake now heading towards where Weiss said they'd be after a quick message sent through Yang's scroll. The walk was short but still tense, running through what they would do when they met the man that made their friend into a rabid animal. Pyrrha stayed behind in the infirmary to help restrain Alex in the worst case scenario that he got free.

They stood outside a large oak door that was holding their meeting, and the voices inside were very muffled, but Port's colorful language made the two girls pause before opening the door. The sight inside was very anti-climactic. Weiss and Ruby sat quietly on one of the oversized couches that fill the room around the large round table, Port standing at the end of it glaring at a very, very….white man. The man in white had a devious smile on his face as he stared down Professor Port, lanky fingers intertwined and wrapped around his knee and his foot tapping beats to a song only he could hear. Port on the other hand was completely different than his usual joyful self.

His eyes peeked out from disheveled grey hair to flow down the sides of his head, almost conceiling a vein that looked about to burst on the side of his forehead, his red suit barely containing his physique, by no means thin, but he seemed to be hulking up and pushing his buttons to their limits. First instinct that most would have was that Port was about to jump on the man any second.

"Are we done here yet?" The man in white said, sounding very bored. Ozpin, who was sitting off on to the side stood from his seat on a separate couch he shared with Glynda and faced the man in white.

"Unfortunately, not until you fix my student." Ozpin said, and although his words were not aggressive, his tone sent a chill up Yang and Blake's spines. The man in white seemed to ponder for a second, then that evil smile returned again.

"I don't think that would be in my best interest. I was just doing my job." The man said with a chuckle under his acidic words. "If you have any questions or concerns, please speak with my employer, Mr. Schnee."

Ozpin didn't flinch, but Glynda and Port were taken aback at this man's pure coldness. Port distanced himself to stand next to his escorted students, and Glynda was pulling out her scroll and swiping through information only she could understand. A few more moments went by, not a sound coming from any parties involved, the man in white not saying a word, Ruby and Weiss looking visibly irritated, and Yang and Blake were speechless as to what they were walking into blind. Weiss broke the silence with her normal professional tone.

"You've been a trusted family doctor of ours for so long, why would you not help me at the very least as the only Schnee in the room?" Weiss let a bit of her genuine concern go through her voice, but her stance was still very strong. As far as she was concerned, she would get this fixed even if she had to ruin this man.

"Yes young Weiss, I work for your family, but my retainer is maintained by your Father, whose instructions have been very clear." Dr. Merlot said in a cryptic tone that sent a chill up Weiss' spine. She had never heard him sound so detached from death. Normally, when she was in his care, he was the kindest person she had ever met, even the more painful treatments he had done were dulled due to his care, but still this man was very reminiscent of a demon, as devoid of caring and mercy as the Grimm.

"If you want, you can contact your Father, and if he says so, I'll provide treatment, but right now, I'm following my instructions to the letter." By now he's started fixing his crisp cuffs and straightening his outfit, before standing and grabbing his doctor's bag from the ground.

"Now I'll be taking my leave, my escort should already be outside to shuttle me back to Atlas, so if we're done here, I'll be off." As he starts to walk to the door leading out, he stops and a faint vibrating noise is heard from his pocket, pulling it out showed it was his scroll, an advanced model similar to Weiss' and it made everyone else's feel dated. As expensive as his scroll was, it didn't stop him from gripping it tight enough to crack the screen a bit, and the glare he sent to Ozpin could've froze anyone else solid, but Ozpin was very much undeterred. In fact the man was smiling as he pushed his glasses higher up his nose.

"Surprised? The Schnee's may have a substantial fortune, but the funding for Beacon has allowed me some…freedoms. As of now, i'm your boss, and your first job is to fix my student." Ozpin actually glared back at the man, daring him to deny the offer, and the normally composed Ozpin glaring at someone was very sobering for his students, realizing finally that the headmaster was, in fact, very human at his core. Eccentric for sure, but human.

Dr. Merlot regarded Ozpin for a few moments before composing himself, straightening out his outfit and clearing his throat, and returning a leveled stare to his new boss.

"I'll get right on that, Professor." Ever the professional, Dr. Merlot was true to his word, in a few moments he was in the infirmary with Port overlooking his methods and hounding his every move. The concoctions he made were dizzying for all in attendance, Ruby and Weiss not leaving Alex's side while the doctor worked, making the room crowded but not hindering the doctor. Glowing liquids, bubbling and some that smelled just wrong were forced down Alex's throat, every hour, for two days.

After dawn on the third day, and Ruby and Weiss sleeping nearby in a neighboring bed, and Port watching the Doctor like a hawk, Merlot finally stopped his paces and announced that Alex would be back in order within the next few days, five at the most. Ozpin was not satisfied at this point though, and demanded that the doctor be put in a dorm until Alex was awake and moving again, just to be sure.

For most of the following days, Blake was the one to stay with Alex, relieving Weiss and Ruby to go get cleaned up and Yang wanted to be there for her sister. Blake sat in a chair next to Alex's bed, reading her book that she got on their day out together, and was content when Yang dropped in to bring her some tea and food.

"How's he holding up?" Yang said, dropping the tea on a nearby table and settling in next to Blake, laying her head on Blake's shoulder and trying to read the page she was on. Blake was a little uncomfortable, due to the chair being made for a single occupant, but her and Yang weren't given much time to bond after the whole situation started, so she relaxed into Yang as much as she could and enjoyed how close her new girlfriend was, and was genuinely enjoying the company.

"He's fine so far, hasn't moved though. I'm still worried to be honest. Beating the doctor couldn't have been that easy." Blake said, glancing at Alex as she spoke. He was laying facing the ceiling and the only reprieve that Blake had was the constant rise and fall of his chest.

"Even still, if the doctor tries anything, we'll be there for him then, too." Yang said, nuzzling Blake and letting out a small yawn. It was still early in the morning and Yang would never admit that she wouldn't be sleeping soundly until her friend was back up on his feet.

"I also wish we could've finished that date, you really outdid yourself, Yang." Blake said, her small smile making an appearance as her face flushed a bit. In her mind, the only way that the date could've ended was her kissing Yang for how far Yang went to make sure her date was perfect. She's glad they were able to be there to help with Alex, but to say she wasn't disappointed was entirely false.

Yang snaked her arms around Blake, pulling her close and burying her face in Blake's raven hair.

"We'll have many more opportunities." Yang said, making a hidden promise to outdo herself in date qualities.

"So go, tomorrow." A weak voice came from the bed near them, but still deep and able to break them from their small world. Blake's large amber eyes locked with Alex's autumn eyes wreathed in black fur and pupils in slits, but they were open and staring back to her.

"I didn't mean to interfere with your time, and come tomorrow I'm walking out of here regardless of what anyone says, please, try again." Alex said, his voice was still weak from lack of use, but he was lucid. Yang and Blake looked to each other, then back to Alex.

"Not until you're on your feet, then we'll talk about it." Yang said. Alex smiled.

"On my feet right; I can do that." He said, then began to stand up. Both girls were by his side in a flash, not sure what to do as they thought that pushing him down could've hurt him. Yet he still stood, inch by inch and the occasional groan of exertion, but the man was on his feet again, standing tall and looking down on the two girls that kept him company with a smile on his face.

"A deals a deal, let's talk about it." Blake and Yang's jaw's dropped, but they did feel a little excited, to say the least.


	13. Chapter 13 - Date Night Take 2

After Alex stood up since his treatment, he had been adamant that he left the infirmary, and no one had a reason to stop him once the doctor said he'd make a full recovery. Alex, though it was through gritted teeth and clear anger, thanked the doctor for his treatment and Alex's full recovery. The walk back to his dorm was a long one even with his team, namely Yang, helping him stay upright. Weiss was overflowing with apologies that Alex waved off, saying they'd have time to talk about it later. When the door to their dorm opened, the sight of his own bed made him even more tired and he almost collapsed onto the bed then and there if it weren't for Yang slowing his fall, even if he almost pulled her with him.

Exhaustion took him and within a few seconds of laying his head down, he was out like a light. The remaining members quietly left the room to talk in the hallway, Blake being the last out and pulling the door silently. They stood in a circle around the door and talking quietly to themselves.

"You think he's really going to be okay?" Ruby said, uncertainty filling her tone and making her worry obvious.

"I think we should watch him in shifts, so that we keep an eye on him but we're not falling behind too much on our schooling." Weiss said, ever the professional even if she was worried too.

"How can you think of school at a time like this?" Yang whisper yelled to her teammate. Even Yang knew she had a point, but her instincts said this was not the time for books, but to stay with their teammate until he was back up on his own power.

"To a degree, I agree with Yang, but I don't think he'd appreciate us killing ourselves worrying about him, so I second Weiss' idea." Blake spoke up in her own quiet voice and crossing her arms in front of her. Yang looked like she wanted to argue, but fell quiet when she saw Blake's face, serious and leaving no real room for argument.

So Ruby spoke up to make the final choice for her team, stating that they would watch in shifts and whoever was not watching him was to provide notes and missed homework for the rest of the team, Blake and Weiss offering to help Alex get caught up when he was ready. When they were all in agreement, they were surprised to find a very bandaged up Pyrrha walking towards them. When the team locked eyes with Pyrrha, she broke from her path and walked up to the girls now concerned for a new reason.

Pyrrha's normally flawless golden armor was still slightly damaged from Alex's claws and she had bandages over most of her exposed arms and legs, and one namely crossing her eye from when he took a swipe at her and she barely avoided losing an eye. Most were worried that Pyrrha's views on Alex were similar to a rabid animal, or that she had hated him for losing control.

"How's he doing?" She broke through the thoughts of the now stunned team. She looked genuinely concerned; her emerald eyes locked on the dorm room door that she knew Alex was still behind. Weiss stepped forward and put an arm on an un-bandaged portion of her arm and smiled warmly at the gladiator woman.

"He'll be just fine, how are you though? I didn't think there were that many wounds?" Weiss said, eying her arms up and down. Pyrrha's arms were just sleeves of bandages at this point and her normally well-kept hair wasn't in its normal crimson ponytail, but flowing freely down her back, only kept out of her face by her golden crown.

"It's not as bad as it looks, I wanted to apologise for fighting with him, but this may not be the best time. Can you tell him everything is alright between us? I know he wasn't in control of his actions." Pyrrha said chuckling a bit, remembering that the nurses were so focused on keeping out of the doctor's way that they almost mummified her in bandages, and she didn't want to be rude by taking them off for them so she just left them on, even if they itched a lot.

"We'll tell him, thank you for thinking of him." Ruby piped up from the back of the group, nearest to the door. Pyrrha waved to the group and went on her way, disappearing around a corner further down the hallway, and as soon as she was gone, the girls went back to their dorm room where Alex was still passed out and dead to the world. Silence fell as the girls went about their normal routines, Yang and Blake taking turns with the shower now that they have a chance to get fully cleaned up, and Ruby was back to struggling with the math homework assigned by Dr. Oobleck. Weiss, however, was hovering over Alex like a hawk, looking for any sign that he was uncomfortable.

"When he woke up, he had a request for us." Blake said after drying her hair and Yang taking her place in the bathroom. The sound of the shower running brought the girls attention and they all looked at Blake. "He wanted us to re-do our dates, regardless of how he feels." Blake finished.

"He really did? Sounds like him." Ruby said with a chuckle as she looked at the now heavily snoring man. Weiss caressed the top of Alex's head with a smile on her face as Ruby turned around.

"Alright team, we'll do as he says, but we'll fit it into our plans. You and Yang will take the first date, then the next day Weiss and I will. That way Weiss can plan, and Yang can do what she's probably been thinking about since Alex said something." Ruby declared, receiving nods from her teammates. The next day was going to be fun, they could feel it.

The next morning, Alex awoke to a similar scene as before, Blake and Yang undressed and scurrying to find the perfect outfit, this time though, the other two were still in pajama's.

"If this is going to be a constant thing, I may need to start getting up before you guys." Alex said as he covered his face with his pillow. Blake and Yang shared a chuckle as they ducked into the bathroom again. Ruby and Weiss were enjoying their day off, remembering after everyone was awake that today was Saturday so classes were canceled, so they took the opportunity to enjoy a movie together playing on Ruby's scroll.

"So, what's all the commotion about?" Alex asked after removing the pillow now that it was clear of any half naked teammates. Ruby paused the movie and regarded Alex.

"Today is their date day, so for today you'll be hanging with Weiss and I." Ruby said, getting closer to Alex and flopping down on his bed. Alex looked confused for a second when Weiss joined her side before the pieces fell in place in his head.

"What about you guys? You don't need to stay here for my sake-" He was cut off by Weiss' pale hand shooting up in front of his face to silence him.

"It's already decided, so just relax and enjoy it you dolt!" Weiss huffed, then she put her hand down on Ruby's, smiling when Ruby held it back and smiled at her. Alex sighed and sat up fully, pulling on a new shirt and staying in his pajama shorts.

"So, what are we doing then? " He asked once his head peeked out through his shirt and started feeding his arms through.

"I don't know, we were starting with a movie and going from there." Ruby said, picking her scroll back up. They were enjoying another Spruce Willis movie when he woke up, and silently agreed to start it over to watch it with him. Alex stood, and both Weiss and Ruby were on him in a second, urging him to stay in bed.

"I'm just going to grab us some snacks for the movie, calm down." Alex chuckled as Ruby wrapped both her arms around his torso and started her famous pout, large silver puppy dog eyes commanding his will to sit down, but Alex would not be deterred, he knew how to enjoy a movie and no simple recovery would stop his process. Ruby gave in when he started walking away, sinking further into his bed as he walked out the door. Yang finally came out of the bathroom wearing a stunning red dress that opened to reveal her right leg and open backed design showed off her figure. Seeing how Blake was wearing a simple black flowing dress that was modest with its turtle neck design and similar open back, she felt a little underdressed compared to her bombshell girlfriend.

"You got everything set up for us, Weiss?" Yang asked as she started to tie her blonde mane into an oversized ponytail of golden locks. Weiss pulled out her scroll and clicked for a few pages before letting out a contented sigh.

"Yes, everything is in order, and your ride should be waiting outside for you. Please do enjoy yourselves, I've hand-picked every place you'll go to ensure it will be absolutely perfect." She said, proud of herself for her tastes; Ruby was worried however, she didn't think that fancy places suited her sister at all, and tried to curtail Weiss, but it didn't really work that well.

Yang and Blake said their thanks, and they were off. Both extravagant dresses slipping out of the door to their dorm and off into the ether. Shortly after, Alex came through with arms full of drinks and junk food, even a special pack of chocolate chip cookies he bought and stashed for whenever he wanted to give his leader a lovely treat. She obviously noticed, made clear by how she stared at the bag with large eyes and seemed to miss Alex talking to her. Dividing the snacks and drinks, Alex sat down on his bunk as Ruby fumbled with the scroll to connect it with the dorms holo-projector to watch the movie on a bigger screen. Weiss sat down next to him, almost on the edge of the bed, and anxiously waited with Alex. She'd never admit it outside the team, but she found the Spruce Willis movies rather enjoyable due to their horrible nature.

Ruby sat down on the other side of him, taking up the other edge of the bed and went to start the movie again. Glancing over at Weiss, Alex found her staring at her leader/girlfriend occasionally and something didn't sit right with Alex, thankfully though, it was a quick fix. He set his snacks down and reached over to Ruby, who squeaked as she was lifted.

"Alex, what are you doing?" She said, sounding nervous.

"You'll see." Was all he said as he stood, still holding Ruby in his hands by her waist, even Weiss was wondering what he was doing by this point. Ruby was then dropped next to Weiss, much to Weiss' happiness, glaring at Alex for a second before Weiss' head on her shoulder showed her that it wasn't meant to be mean. The cookie handed to her by Alex helped a bit too.

The new seating arrangement agreed upon, the movie was finally started.

Meanwhile in Downtown Vale, the limo that was carrying Yang and Blake stopped in front of a building that seemed like a museum more than a restaurant. It's large pillars out front covering the victorian style building and framing the oak door that reached up two stories seemed a little intimidating, but Weiss' choices and funding would not go to waste.

The inside was equally as extravagant, as the first things they experience inside was the soothing piano playing and echoing through the building like a hymn, and the constant smell of vanilla filling the building and oddly complementing the cream colored table arrangements. Everyone in their seats wearing interesting outfits made of odd shapes and colors, and Blake and Yang almost gut laughed at some of the more intricate outfits. They were led to their table, a quiet corner seat overlooking the outside, and due to the building being at the top of one of Vale's large hills, gave a great look of the forest surrounding the city and breaking off into the grand ocean beyond, with the moon sun shining off of it perfectly.

Blake sat staring into the menu and trying to hold herself back due to the prices, but the seafood options already had her picking, but Yang was occupied with looking out of the window in her own way. That is, holding herself up on the window sill and being centimeters off of the glass as a large smile danced across her face. Blake managed to tear away from her menu enough to enjoy the view of her girlfriend, and had her own smile, taking in every detail of Yang's face and loving the outfit even more from her profile view.

"Lovely, isn't it?" Yang asked, sitting back down and grabbing her own menu. Blake answered without thinking.

"Yes, you are." Too late, it was out there and Yang heard it, and was trying hard to keep her laughter in. Blake immediately started babbling, racking her brain to find a way out of what she had just said, but came up short. When she didn't speak, Yang did for her.

"The sight's lovely too, but I definitely am glad to be here, with you." Yang said, leaning in and taking a still flustered Blake's hand. They stayed silent, looking at each other and being content with what they had for a precious moment, which was until the waiter showed up.

"May I take your order?" The man stated, his tone cold as he looked at Blake, his steely grey eyes locked on Blake's ears, and they folded down against her scalp. Yang, again, spoke for both of them.

"We'd like to start with the best wine you got! And while you're at it, another waiter." Yang said, a cocky grin coming up as she rested her head on her hand. The waiter wrote down their order and bowed his way out.

"Thanks Yang." Blake said, her ears coming back up as she was alone with Yang again. The rest of the dinner went by without a hitch, the new waiter a deer Faunus that was great with service, receiving their food quickly and was allowed to leave being told their tab was covered courtesy of the Schnee's. Even their ride was there super quick, already waiting outside when they finally did leave.

Before they knew it they were off to their next destination.

Alex had nodded off during the movie, and awoke to a dark room only lit by the sun peeking out through the pulled curtains. Alex felt a weight on his chest, and another on his arm that has long since gone numb. Blinking out the sleep from his eyes, he looked around to find what was going on since he fell asleep. The movie was long since over and was replaying the startup menu on a permanent loop, playing the same overly action packed track all over again, this was normal.

The room's lights were cut off, but they did that to make it feel like a theater, so this was also normal. What wasn't normal was when he looked at his body.

On his arm and making it numb was Weiss, having it draped over her slender form and lightly snoring into Alex's shoulder. And on his chest was Ruby, cuddled up into a small ball and using him as a full body pillow. This was definitely not normal, and he didn't know what to do. On one hand, holding two girls that were in an active relationship seemed wrong, no matter how cute they were as they slumbered, but on the other hand, Alex hated to be woken up, and even more so he hated waking other people. What to do?

Ruby moved slightly, drawing Alex's eyes as it looked like she was finally waking up, drowsy silver eyes still masked with sleep looked up from his chest but her body did not move. They locked gazes for a few seconds, Alex not knowing what to say, then Ruby looked over at Weiss, still wrapped in his arm and still asleep, before looking back to Alex. Alex gulped, getting ready for the wrath of an angry Ruby, but instead she just shrugged and laid her head back down on his chest, then a few seconds went by before she started her own light snoring.

"Uh, guys?" Alex said, still pinned down by the two girls using him as a pillow. No response came from them, so he spoke up again.

"Guys, maybe we should get up." This earned him a light slap from a sleeping Weiss and a mumbled command to shut up, so Alex kept his mouth shut. He tried to move his numb fingers, but couldn't tell if they were working, and the theme for the movie started up again for the hundredth time. Blue tinted his peripheral vision, and he had an idea.

Focusing on his core, he activated his semblance, embracing the ice and lowering his temperature to lower levels, determined to make his chill force the two girls to move. At first, it seemed to work as Weiss 'woke up' enough to look at Alex, similar to how Ruby did, and look around the room. Alex's hopes were almost immediately crushed as Weiss reached down on the bed and pulled Alex's blanket out from under his feet and wrapped the three of them in it, and then went immediately back to sleep in the same spot she was in before.

Alex almost cried at that point.

Yang and Blake were enjoying the lap of luxury on the other side of Vale in their limo, drinking from the included bar in small amounts to stay sober enough to know what they were doing, but enough to still be fun. Blake was having a giggle fit at the funny faces Yang was making, having included toothpicks that were stocked on the in limo bar to make herself have Walrus tusks. Yang was just enjoying seeing Blake so free to laugh around her as she was normally so reserved and quiet.

Finally giving her a break, Yang sat back on the chair, minus the toothpicks, and pat the seat next to her, so Blake sat next to her and Yang's arm found its way over her shoulders. She found herself sinking into Yang's embrace, and enjoying the warmth coming from her girlfriend's semblance.

"Where were we heading again?" Yang asked, resting her cheek on Blake's head. Blake hummed and thought for a second before answering.

"I think we were heading to the new theater that opened, the one with the full couch booths and the drinks." Blake mumbled, the warmth and drinks making her slightly drowsy.

"If Weiss didn't cover it, I'd say we just stay in here, but I'd feel bad to waste the Ice Princess' kindness." Yang said. Admittedly, they both shared the same thoughts, but decided to go anyway. Arriving was like a red carpet opening, with their limo door opening for them, and a crowd of people gathered around to see who the VIP was that got the limo treatment. Blake felt uncomfortable being the center of attention, but Yang ate it up.

Yang strolled up the velvet carpet leading into the large theater like she owned the place, swaying her hips and setting Blake's heart a flutter at her figure on grand display and she felt pride that it was all hers, especially tonight. So Blake followed her closely, and before long they were past the box office and finding their seats.

True enough, the seats were replaced with large comfortable couches and had their own tables as well, and the screen in front of them gargantuan even by theater standards, it must have taken up the whole back wall of the three story building, and the tables were adorned with ornate lamps that were sculpted to be differing elements, some in waves of water and seemed to be carved out of crystal; others like a mountain carved from onyx rock; even more a plume of fire made of stained red glass, all of which showed which section they were in with the fire lamp seats being center to everything and the most popular seats, where they sat.

The screen came to life with previews of other movies that have yet to be announced outside this facility, and waiters were going table to table gathering concession orders before the movie started. One would think they would be the snooty type of waiters they just had to deal with like in the restaurant, but instead what they were treated to were staff adorned in costumes found from the movie they were about to watch, and since this was a Spruce Willis movie that they didn't even hear about tonight, there were men and woman wearing obviously very disadvantaged armor that showed more skin than it protected and toting around prop weaponry. Yang ate up every part of it, especially when their waiter was dressed as Spruce's character and was playing the part of the gritty action hero while taking their orders.

When the movie came on, all the lamps faded to blackness and a hush fell over the crowd of people, and Yang scooted even closer to Blake. Blake looked up at Yang with a smile on her face, illuminated by the humongous screen in front of them, and Yang fell for the raven haired girl all over again, loved the feeling of Blake in her arms and the contact from their uncovered skin touching.

Without much thought, Yang bent down and kissed Blake. At first it was quick, just a test and a taste, but this set Blake off more than Yang thought it would. Blake would then return for more, a deep hungry kiss that seemed to go on forever, and Yang returned it just as ferociously, not wanting to be out done.

They missed most of the movie.

Alex was at his wits end. He hasn't been able to move for the past hour, not wanting to wake the admittedly very adorable duo he calls teammates, but he was actually starting to worry about the state of his arm. But on the other hand, they did look cute. Alex was able to reach the remote with his foot and enjoy the movie properly this time, company and all weighing him down, it was a perfectly horrible movie and he loved it.

The snacks strewn about his bed would need to be cleaned, but he could do nothing about the wrappers and crumbs occupying his bed right now. He had tried the other elements of his semblance, but all it did was make the girls get more cozy against him, pillows actually being added to his chest and shoulder, and when the blanket was blown off, Ruby actually put it back on with notable annoyance, but then went back to sleep.

The door to his dorm room opening drew him from his thoughts, showing Yang and Blake standing in the doorway both with smiles plastered on their faces.

"How'd it go?" Alex said, waving at them with his free arm. Yang laughed when she took in what was going on while they were gone, but she kept her voice down due to them still sleeping soundly.

"We had the best day ever. Thank you for looking after them." Yang said, still laughing a bit.

"Can you help me out?" Alex said, motioning to the two sleeping girls. Blake came to Yang's side and smiled deviously as she whispered into Yang's ear, moving blonde locks out of her way. Whatever she said clicked with Yang as her smile grew even bigger.

"But they look to be sleeping so well." Yang said, and Alex's heart sank.

"Yeah, we wouldn't dream of ruining that for them." Blake finished, walking towards the bathroom and entering. Yang wasn't too far behind her, stopping only for a second to start the movie again, and Alex actually whimpered.

They came out of the bathroom a few minutes later in their pajamas, but only sat down at Alex's legs, each laying on one with a pillow and yet another blanket added to the bundle.

"You're kidding right?" Alex said, now completely held down.

"Nope, it's only fair if we all get to share." Yang said from his left leg, then laid her head back down on the pillow covering his left kneecap. Blake nodded and kept silent as the movie started up with it's opening credits.

It was going to be a long night for Alex, but having all the girls here did make him feel more at peace, but he was still very uncomfortable; because, now his legs were going numb and stiff, and Ruby moved up and snuggled into his neck.

Yep, it was going to be a long night.


	14. Someday - Not Dead Yet!

**A/N: Hello all followers and visitors, i'm posting this to make it known that this story is far from over, I've just had a major setback with the holidays and my file getting corrupted so i'm currently re-writing the next chapter. I appreciate those hanging in there waiting on the next update and I promise it'll be finished soon. Thank you for your continued views and hang in there just a little longer.**


	15. Chapter 14 - Something New

The next morning, Alex awoke to the same state as before, the whole of Team RWBY holding him down under a mountain of blankets and pillows and sound asleep. The bird outside their window chirping up its morning song to welcome the day, but by now the sound was only grating on his nerves. His arms and legs had gone completely numb, and nobody had moved; never once did it occur to him that he was a comfortable body pillow, but the job itself sucked in the long term.

"Alright guys, time to wake up." Alex said softly, but his irritation still shining through. Ruby was the first to stir, looking up at him with silver eyes freshly pulled from dreams, and she sat up rubbing away the fog from her eyes and looking around. Her eyes landed on the state of Alex and she had to stifle a laugh.

"Sorry about that Alex, it was just so comfy there, and it seems the others agreed." She said through chuckles, addicting enough that even Alex dropped his mood enough to join in on the laugh, causing Weiss to stir from his shoulder. She sat up in a way similar to Ruby, but somehow more refined and elegant, her long silver hair trailing down her back as well as covering her face. She let out a silent yawn and climbed out of the bed, only to immediately disappear into the bathroom, and Alex took the opportunity to make sure his hand was still there and still worked. Thankfully, it did.

"Two down, two to go." Alex said, staring at his hand as the feeling of pins and needles was absorbed into his whole arm and hand, that annoying tingling sensation delaying his sense of touch for the time being, so Alex decided to move his legs.

Moving them proved difficult though as the two larger members of the team were wrapped around them as if they were a teddy bear, Yang drooling into his thigh as she stirred in her sleep, but did not move.

"C'mon Yang, Alex needs to get up too." Ruby said, poking her elder sister in the nose. Yang chuckled quietly and seemed to fall back to sleep, if not for her goofy grin plastered wide on her face. Ruby huffed, and pouted for all of one second before an honestly very scary grin came to her face, and her fingers took on the shape of claws. Before Alex could react, Ruby was on her sister, tickling at every inch she could reach, and Yang jumped to life trying to shake off her ticklish cookie monster of a sister, both of them being taken to the floor from Ruby's zealousness.

Blake sat up silently, locks of raven hair a mess around her cat ears that were pressed flat against her head, and her drowsy eyes scanning around the room. When she saw Alex, she remembered where she fell asleep and immediately looked away, face a full on crimson that could rival Ruby's cloak. Alex's reaction time sucked this morning, as Blake was immediately gone into the bathroom behind Weiss, much to the Weiss' angst for what they could hear outside.

Yang and Ruby arose, now out of breath and still laughing to themselves when Yang gave Alex a mock solute.

"Good morning Alex!" She gave a slight drawl to his name, but the whole situation had a long needed smile glued to Alex's face.

"So, what's on the agenda today, Ruby? Team practice? Sparring?" Alex said, and Ruby had that glint in her eye that always seemed to come up when she was super excited about anything, complemented with her hopping in place and intertwining her fingers in front of her face, the whole scene was oddly adorable.

"Actually, today is a mission for Weiss and I only. Operation White Rose!" She announce triumphantly.

"White…Rose?" Alex said. Ruby deflated a bit at the missed reference and leaned in close enough to whisper in his ear.

"Weiss and I are going on a date today, and you're going to spend time with Yang and Blake, got it?" She said, somewhat commanding, but another day in seemed great to him, so Alex nodded his head in agreement and gave Yang a thumbs up, which she returned.

Weiss and Blake emerged from the bathroom wearing their normal outfits, Blake in her Blake shirt that was cut too short on purpose under its white trench coat and sinfully tight black jeans complementing her thigh high combat boots with the gold embossing. Weiss, however, was wearing a dress rarely seen by the team: a flowing blue dress that looked like water that faded to a sky blue at the edges, a leg slit into the side showing off her pale but toned leg and the heel her tiny feet were slipped into, other than that she had her normal off center ponytail with tiara on full display.

"Gotta get ready now." Ruby said, leaving Alex's side and diving into the bathroom once the other girls were clear. As the door shut, Alex looked over at the calm yet eerily excited Weiss.

"So who decided they're having a date today?" Yang asked, a joking intention behind her words if Weiss took the bait.

"I…suggested that we go out today. And what we should do. And," she caught on when Yang made a whipping motion in the air with her hand, and Weiss face turned beet red, either from rage or embarrassment, Alex was too scared to say. Before the world could turn into either ice, or without a sense of gravity, Blake joined in with a gentle hand on yang's shoulder.

"Don't ruin this for them, they gave us our time, let them have theirs undisturbed." She calmly said, a small smile coming through that disarmed Yang who begrudgingly nodded in agreement.

"Thank you, Blake."

With that, operation White Rose was a go, with Ruby accompanied by a very restrained but still excited Weiss in tow. As soon as the dorm door was shut behind them, an all too familiar chill ran up Alex's spine, as two shadows stood over him oddly enough blocking all the natural light from touching him and adding to the sense of foreboding. Standing above him was both Blake and Yang, the latter of whom had the same mischievous grin when she knew they weren't going to do anything necessarily legal.

"No chance of just relaxing, is there?" Alex asked weakly, and all hopes were quickly crushed when Yang slowly shook her head, never breaking eye contact with those now very intimidating purple eyes aglow with pure mischief. Even Blake had an amused look on her face, like she knew what was going on before he did. That traitor!

Meanwhile, out front of the dorm there was an extremely long white limo, adorned with a prim and proper man holding open the rear passenger door, his back straight and his shoulders tall as this man completely and whole heartedly enjoyed every aspect of his job.

Weiss jumped in without a second thought, but Ruby had a second of apprehension when she locked eyes with who would be their chauffeur, his piercing blue eyes looking her up and down so much that she could smell his judging already and it only served to make her more uncomfortable as she climbed into the unfamiliar vehicle. The inside was lined with red velvet, the floor adorned with a carpet of unimaginable worth and the sides covered by elegant couches instead of the normal car seat or bench seat. The ceiling to the limo lined with LED lights that shown a pure white light to illuminate the sheer elegance of the interior.

Sitting quietly in her far back seat was Weiss, a slender leg sitting on the other as she looked over to Ruby, one alabaster eyebrow lifted and the unspoken question thrown to the air.

"Sorry Weiss, just not used to the royal treatment." Ruby said as she recoiled into herself. She was never one to laugh in the face of kindness, but this was a bit much even for such an adventurous girl. Instead of getting angry, as was her standard, she instead had a small innocent smile as she held out her hand towards Ruby, who took it and snuggled up to her girlfriend and the tension melted off her pale shoulders.

"Sorry if this makes you uncomfortable, I just wanted the best for our day." Weiss said, short and sweet but her honesty was still there. The ride was smooth and uneventful through the streets of Vale, leading into the part of town filled with skyscrapers made mostly of glass and steel, threatening to block out the sun. The streets were almost empty, aside from a few men and women wearing business outfits carrying future altering briefcases and talking into their scrolls like their lives depended on it.

The door opened and Ruby was the first out, stretching now that she was out of that moving box and waiting for her girlfriend. She stood with her mouth agape as a pale slender leg sporting an aquamarine heel that shone in the sunlight stretched out of the limo, then the rest of her figure followed in a smooth fluid motion that's been practiced a thousand times.

"Hope you're hungry, Ruby." Weiss extender her hand for Ruby's, and led her inside the nearest building that looked nothing like any restaurant that she had ever been to, reaching up three stories with the front door at the end of an expansive red carpet that reached down to right where the limo had stopped. Tall alabaster columns held up the roof around the central column that made up the building itself, white brick underlying them and they were lined with large windows covered with lattice grating and well maintained plants. The tinted windows keeping the inside cool, but blocking any prying eyes from outside even in this bright hour.

Once they were inside the great oak doors that were the front door, they were enveloped by the restaurants environment. Classical music filled the slightly smoky air with dull tunes that soothed the soul, and the crème colored walls filled with epic sized paintings from all points of history with the ceiling filled with an overly extravagant chandelier. The waiter's that were 'running' around with trays filled primarily with drinks and desserts always had a calm look to their face, despite the how quickly they were moving around constantly.

Before Ruby knew what was going on, they were seated in a corner booth, away from windows and the busy center of the waiting area; menu's in hand, bottle of red wine on the table already and water to chase it, and sitting across from her was her alabaster goddess, Weiss already buried in a menu thinking of food they would love.

"You liking the place, Ruby?" Weiss said, not looking away from the menu. Knowing her leader turned girlfriend, she skipped the entrees and was already making choices from the dessert portion of the menu.

"It's definitely amazing to be here, just not what I'm used to. But yes, I like the place." Ruby said innocently and trying not to bug Weiss with being uncomfortable. It was obvious a lot of planning went into this date on her end and she wasn't about to ruin it.

The waiter approached their table with practiced motions, avoiding all the tables and walking like nothing was in his way at all, and stood next to their table legs and back straight and shoulders high. That feeling was back again, being looked over and judged without a word, but this time Weiss noticed as she quickly rattled off their order and waved him away almost as quickly as he came.

"It's okay Ruby, they can think what they want, but with me none of them are brave enough to say a word." Weiss said with her normal small smile when she's feeling a bit prideful. Ruby eased up a bit and returned the smile before looking at her menu finally. It looked expensive, primarily from the lack of prices listed, giving a sense of if you have to ask, you can't afford it; so her plan of keeping it cheap was out of the window. Another hurdle to get over was that she couldn't say half the things on the menu and the other half sounded disgusting.

"You dolt, we've already ordered!" Weiss scolded but was chuckling at the same time and Ruby dropped her menu like it was on fire, somehow making it land neatly in front of her. Having nothing to occupy her hands, she folded them in front of her and kept her head down, she was definitely out of her element.

At the same time, Alex had been dragged out of the dorm by his partners, and was walking down the market district in Vale. His sword and jacket a bit unnecessary in the calm environment, but he didn't have anything else to wear really unless he went out in his pajamas. He was starting to wonder when he would be able to catch up on homework when they stopped outside a clothes shop. Blake was uncomfortable, but Yang insisted they stop in there, and that Alex wait outside, so he was leaning up against a light pole and looking through his scroll.

However, inside was a different story altogether. Yang was sitting outside the changing room while her raven haired partner occupied one of the stalls, trying on the multiple outfits that she had suggested she tried on. She may have gone a bit far with a maid outfit, but it was good for a laugh when Blake had absentmindedly put it on. Either that or she went with it knowing it was all in good fun.

She had come out in several outfits by now: a red number that was a bit too tight on purpose and this was quickly discarded; another outfit she had picked that was just a black shirt with some obscure band that Yang didn't know and some tight jeans which were quickly shot down by Yang; and the most recent outfit being a leather jacket over a tank top that was low enough to fashionably show off her black lace bra with a similar pair of black jeans with rips in it on purpose and combat boots similar to Ruby's without all the red trim to them. This would be saved for later, but according to Yang they still haven't found the one they were looking for.

"You know, Yang, if you told me what we were doing here, I could help you look." Blake said from the changing room.

"If I did, you might not want to help." She said with a chuckle, and Blake immediately felt a chill go up her spine. If it involved her, it was normally a bad idea, but involving her wardrobe was not normally something she was prepared for and for the first time in a while, she doubted Yang.

Alex in the meantime, was getting bored out of his mind, standing outside a store was not how he thought he'd spend the last day of the weekend, but he didn't have a choice. Yang threatened him with actual physical violence if he said he wanted to do homework one more time, and a rumble in the dorm room didn't sound fun at all. Rather than fuse with the light pole anymore, he decided to go to a neighboring store, a weapon store and just look around. Walls were adorned with multiple types of weapons, but nothing would replace Rose Bolero. It was just amusing to see the craftsmanship from time to time, maybe stock up on casings for his gun form.

Walking up to the counter with his bounty, a familiar old man gave him a grunt that he assumed was a greeting and rang up what he had grabbed, just a box of casings that you load dust into. Shoving the box into his coat pocket and paying the needed Lien, he was walking out of the shop when he noticed the shop across the street finally, and recognized the Schnee logo on it's sign. A small shop for all intents and purposes, but it was the most official looking on the block, and the name was what made him start running to it: Schnee prosthetics inc.

Finally coming up to the building, he felt the same type of chill he had when meeting Weiss, and walked through the electronic glass doors. Immediately the building was off to him, the walls lined with assorted mechanical limbs, and one solitary table sitting in the center of the single room, with one clerk standing firm and unmoving.

"Welcome, how may I assist you?" She said, finally noticing him walk in, not seeing a faunus, but a huntsman and spoke with some degree of respect. A neat change since the whole Dr. Merlot incident.

"What is the process for arm prosthetics?" Alex went directly for the question, and she looked him up and down before speaking.

"Well, for starters, you need to be missing an arm or leg." She somewhat joked.

"Asking for a friend. She lost an arm during the fall, and I'd like to help her."

The clerk then stopped for a few moments, pondering her next answer and what she could do, and Alex felt a little out of his league. Schnee products were never cheap and he didn't know how he could pay for this, but he'd find a way. Yang needed this.

A few tense moments later, the clerk spoke up.

"I'm familiar with Team RWBY, and their contributions to us all during the fall, so I'll help any way I can." Alex was knocked for a loop at the generosity, but he'd need to see where it goes first.

"Would she be willing to submit for surgery?" The clerk had pulled out a clipboard as well as plugging information to her computer and was typing away before anything was said.

"I don't think so."

"That's fine, I'm familiar with how her wound was 'repaired' and we do have some models that attached to skin and can also be removed without surgery, and operate on sensors that will adapt to how your muscles move, literally plug and play as it were."

"And how much would that go for?"

"No need to worry about it, I'll personally cover what I could, and Beacon can do the rest." The clerk said flatly, and again Alex was floored. Just what did Team RWBY do before he came along to earn that much fame?

The clerk then disappeared from view for a moment, Alex missing where she went until she showed up suddenly behind him, holding a black box by its handle and a smile on her face that crinkled the eyes behind her glasses. At this point Alex was able to really take in how she looked, she was an older female with her greying red hair up in a bun held in with a ruby pin, its design buried under loose ends. Her uniform a blue vest under a tight white button up and a black skirt leading down to similarly black heels, the common Schnee uniform it seems.

She set the case down on the counter and was preparing to open it when Alex found it's words.

"I don't think these are cheap, and I definitely appreciate the help, but why are you going this far?" It made sense, but Alex didn't want to be rude to sudden kindness.

"It was Team RWBY that saved my son during the fall, he was here for the Vytal festival, and if not for them, he may have fallen to the White Fang. Helping them like this is the least I could do." She said, her smile still there and Alex could tell it was genuine. The suitcase finally opened, and inside was a mechanical arm, the right one, and immediately Alex knew he had found Yang's new arm.

Blake and Yang exited the shop, arms full of bags and such and walked back to where they last saw Alex, only to notice he was missing. Glancing up and down the street, he was nowhere to be found.

"Where could he have gone?" Yang said, noticeably annoyed. She was excited to show off the new outfit she made Blake come out in, and was holding her past outfit in one of her bags. Now she was out in a black top that left her shoulders open, and had a window to her cleavage, and even though it was tight around her core, it was still modest in a way. To cover her shoulders, she was wearing a small cropped leather jacket, but she would not budge on the ripped jeans and boots, pulling together the punk rocker look that Yang was enjoying all the same.

Blake pulled out her scroll and was typing away after saying she'd message Alex, but the minutes were passing quickly as they waited; until finally, Alex came into view, running across the street with a case in tow.

"Where'd you go? Buying a carrying case?" Yang asked innocently. Alex had a smile plastered to his face ever since he left the shop and was itching to give Yang her present.

"No I got you something, Yang. Close your eyes." Alex said as he knealt down and started opening the case. Yang laughed for a second, but played along all the same.

"You too, Blake." Alex instructed, and Blake followed along, but her ears twitched at every sound he made.

Yang stood there, getting antsy at what her surprise would be, and the noises stopped for a second, then her upper jacket was removed, but thankfully she trusted him and didn't immediately deck him for removing anything on her. Within the next few minutes, something cold was attached to her stump, making her jump at the sudden sensation on her stump as something was attached to the bangle meant to hide the wound, and a strap was fed over her shoulder and tightened. Then for the first time in several months, she felt weight on her right side.

"Alright, open up." Alex said, having backed away a few feet.

Yang opened her eyes and readjusted to the sunlight before she looked at what was hanging from her severed arm. There, where there should have been nothing, was a hunk of metal and circuits and a feeling of pins and needles, like it was numb. She tried to move her fingers like she normally would, and the first few attempts led to nothing but a worse numb feeling, until her thumb twitched. That's when the shock set in.

"Wh-Where did you get this?!" Yang said, now that her arm was moving as it should, and it was even scaling to not be longer than her other appendage and taking on weight similar to how it should have been compared to its fleshy twin.

"Places." Alex said, keeping it vague to tease the blonde. Blake had approached Yang and was touching the new appendage, taking in its new design and feel. It was getting warm, just like Yang was.

"Blake, I-"Yang said, overcome with emotion before she could finish. She then pulled Blake in for a full, two armed hug as tears started to flow.

"Blake, I can FEEL it!" She finally announced. Alex smiled as he remembered how it was described to him, saying that the cap Yang was fitted with had the neural sensors needed to experience touch and work wirelessly without any more surgery. Alex was then pulled from his flashback when Yang tackle hugged him into the middle of the street, showering him with thanks.

Yep, this definitely beat homework.

By the time that Weiss and Ruby were good to go, they had made a scene of seeing how much dessert Ruby can stuff down. Weiss had ordered quite a spread for them, from different shakes to almost every cookie on the menu and several different types of pies, all of them different types of chocolate, and Ruby was in heaven. The whole meal, Ruby was thanking Weiss for this meal, praising her as the best girlfriend ever, and Weiss' normally flawless pale skin was flushed with a constant blush that lasted the whole meal. The food was paid for and left on the table, and they stood outside waiting for their ride, Weiss finding that Ruby's hand fit perfectly in hers.

"I think I may have overdone it Weiss." Ruby grumbled as she placed a hand on her stomach. Eating a metric ton of chocolate based sweets might have not been a good idea, but she couldn't help herself. Now her poor stomach was paying the price, but oh boy that sugar high.

"I never said you had to eat it all." Weiss replied with a chuckle in her voice.

"But I had to! If there are sweets to be had, you leave none standing!" Ruby said in a triumphant voice, not unlike how she speaks when leading her team through a mission. Her rant was interrupted by her scroll vibrating in her pocket, but she ignored it in favor of looking into her girlfriends eyes.

The moment would be perfect if Ruby was brave enough to just kiss Weiss. They have yet to actually do it, and it was feeling like Weiss was waiting for her to be the one to do it. And it would help if her scroll would stop going off. Here she was, looking back at her with that innocent little smile that made Ruby's heart stop, or maybe the sugar was to blame, all she had to do was lean in and- there goes the scroll again.

"What is it, Ruby?" Weiss said, and Ruby was still just as speechless. Was she always that close? Did she always smell that good? Why won't my scroll leave me alone for a second?

"You're, uh, really pretty, Weiss." Ruby found words, but not the words she was looking for. Still it seemed to make Weiss happy, but it wasn't all that Ruby was feeling.

"You're looking great too, Ruby." Weiss said in a low voice, now really close and Ruby's heart was beating on the inside of her chest, threatening to burst any moment. Ruby could practically feel Weiss' small breaths on her face, could feel the loose platinum hairs of her ponytail brushing against her face when the wind blew. C'mon Ruby, it's now or never and-oh, my scroll's going off again.

In a completely anticlimactic moment, Ruby pulled away from Weiss and pulled out her scroll, and Weiss recoiled from the sudden mood change, annoyance emanating from her form and willing it to strike at Ruby with all it's got as she glared at her scroll.

"Weiss, it's Yang…" Ruby whispered, and Weiss went into full serious mode.

"What happened, Ruby? What's going on?" Then her eyes landed on the scroll, an image sent from Yang to Ruby of her holding Blake with a new metal arm wrapped around her girlfriend and her human arm waving at the camera, Alex probably the one taking the shot.

"Yang's whole again." Ruby said, tears now coming from her, and Weiss was actually happy she picked up the scroll. She did want that kiss though.

Later, they've got time.


	16. Chapter 15 - Animalistic Tendencies

The rest of the day after Yang had her new arm was spent testing it out. She had wanted to immediately see what it's carry capacity might be, but her sister managed to convince her to start light with some sparring against the test Grimm in Professor Ports class. This must have been the first time that Yang was excited for class to start up again, because that night she could hardly stay still in her bunk.

Alex was happy that he was able to help his friend, but the amount of fidgeting and excited talk was wearing thin, but he kept his mouth shut as he didn't want to ruin her good spirits. She was smiling even more than she was before her first date with Blake, and Alex wasn't in any hurry to get rid of it. Once sleepless night later, they were up and ready for class the next morning. Yang was strutting through the halls, showing off that her right sleeve was not rolled up anymore, and reveling in the newfound attention. The rest of her team was convinced that if Team JNPR wasn't called out on a mission the day before, she'd want to break it in with an arm wrestling match with Nora.

Finally reaching their classroom, they took their seats and Yang was practically vibrating with excitement. Even the normally drawn out lecture that Port gave regaling his students with stories of his past wasn't diminishing the blonde's excitement at all.

"So now, due to today's lecture; I believe a bit of live practice is in order! Do we have a volunteer?" Port called, motioning to a large cage that began to growl menacingly. The rest of the team were talking amongst themselves about what the surprise Grimm may be, however Alex was getting a chill up his spine. Port wouldn't throw anything at them they couldn't handle, so what was this fear he was feeling?

Immediately, Yang shot her metallic hand in the air and was almost standing out of her seat. Professor Port let out a laugh and motioned for Yang to come to the front of the class. She didn't bother putting on her normal armored outfit and stayed in her school uniform, likely to excited to fight properly to be bothered with something small like clothes.

As soon as she was front and center, it became obvious that she was positively glowing, her goofy grin large and in charge of her other features, and sparks coming off of her golden mane as her semblance got ready for the oncoming brawl. Even though Yang was making the room hotter by the second, an all too familiar chill without a name went down Alex's back, the growls coming from the cage pinging something in Alex's memory, but he couldn't recall it at the moment, but it was on the edge of his thoughts, just outside of reach. Then the cage opened.

Out came a large Grimm, similar to a Beowulf, but larger. Fiercer. Hungrier. Alex could feel the raw instinct to eat, rip and tear at anything it could get its hands on. The large claws digging into the ground as it came out of its cage, the blood red eyes burning into Yang as it locked onto its prey, and the steam coming from its black sludge of drool falling from its mouth only meant one thing to Alex: it was still hungry. Yang's smile did not falter as she readied her weapons and stood ready to fight tooth and nail with the monster. All Alex wanted to do was tear the monster apart, get it away from his teammate, to protect Yang. His nails had formed into claws, and he was raking at the table, leaving deep grooves as he stared intently at this monster closing in on Yang.

"Alex, what is it?" Ruby tapped his shoulder, and immediately recoiled at the autumn eyes staring back at her, Alex had slipped in his concealment and was almost in full animal mode again. She grabbed Weiss and Blake's attention and they had their eyes glued to him.

"Alex, talk to us." Blake said, having switched to Alex's left and grabbed one of his hands, and showed no fear when his near feral eyes locked on her.

"That thing needs to die." Alex hissed under his breath. "I need to kill it before it gets to her."

"Yang can handle herself." Ruby had joked, but it caused Alex's hand to start digging deeper into his desk.

"I don't care. It needs to die." He growled again. Blake was stunned at how single minded he had become, and thought to grab Port's attention when the monster leapt into action at Yang. It's torso sized claw found nothing but ground as Yang flew into the air, sailing right over its strike and started raining down red dust shells from her trusty weapons. The shots hit, and the impact felt like it shook the room, but the monster did not flinch; almost as if the attack had never happened. Yang landed, but did not let up on her assault, choosing to punch directly against its open ribs, splintering some of its bone armor and earning a reaction from the monster. It let out an ear piercing howl that forced Blake to pin her ears back, and Alex's instincts were kicking in full tilt now. This beast dared to tread on his territory and attack a member of his pack, it had to die.

Yang recovered from the shock of the sound and managed to fire a shot in time to sweep under its swinging claw, the momentum propelling her under it and to safety. She recovered, and started pounding away at the monster's legs, attempting to break its stance. The monster swept its massive tail behind it and almost connected with Yang, but she had fired another shot off and was flying through the air, her blonde mane resembling wings as she flew, and her smile never faded. She was in her element.

"I'm going in there." Alex growled and attempted to stand, and the combined effort of the three remaining girls kept him in his seat.

"If you go in there now, it'll only create problems later. Let her handle this fight." Weiss scolded. Alex chuffed in response and continued grinding his nails into the desk. Eventually he will be free, consequences be damned, and it'll feel SO good to rip that monster to pieces with his bare hands.

Yang landed with a soft thud on the back of the monster, and held on for dear life as the monster started to flail and buck around the room in an attempt to throw her off. Yang grabbed a thick tuft of the creatures fur of pure darkness and was attempting to bury her metal appendage as deep in its back as she could, shots of Ember Celica punctuating each shot, the fire illuminating ever impact as she focused her assault on one point, wearing it down until finally her fist was buried in its back.

The monster stopped all movement at that point, and its breathing became harder, more akin to panting at that point, and it looked like breathing was hurting it. Moments passed as the students stared on, waiting for either party to give, Yang's arm was stuck within the beast, and the beast still would not move a muscle. After what felt like years, the monster's legs started to give. At first they would just wobble, only held up by their immense muscles and its willpower, but even that would not hold as its torso came crashing down to the floor of the classroom, perfectly still. A little struggling after, and Yang was able to free her metal appendage, now soaked in pitch black Grimm blood that was smoking into the atmosphere, to be soon followed with the body of the beast.

"We seem to have a true huntress in our midst! She faced an unknown Grimm head on and managed to emerge victorious and unscathed! Congratulations Ms. Xiao Long!"

"Wasn't any biggie really!" Yang said, bashfully smiling as she soaked in the crowds applause at Port's announcement.

Alex was feeling lightheaded at seeing the fallen creature. He felt…cheated. Almost like that was his kill to make and it had been taken from him; like nobody had anymore right to kill this particular Grim than him. He tried to shake these thoughts, but whenever he would look upon his partner, those feelings would come back and he couldn't explain it, and his rage only grew.

"I have to go." Was all he said before darting out of the room in a red blur, almost putting Ruby's speed semblance to shame; and leaving Yang at the front of the room watching him leave. Her eyes bounced between the slamming classroom door and the rest of her team, but nobody had answers for her.

Alex tore down the halls as quick as he could, feeling his rage dip, only to rush back in a strong current that overflowed within him. It was reminding him of how he was when he lost control thanks to the doctor, and his first plan was to get somewhere that he could be alone and sort himself out.

He ran down the thankfully empty hallways until he found himself on the roof of the dorms. He didn't remember his way there, but somehow this was his destination, and it would work just as any other; while classes were in session it was unlikely anyone would find him. He then let loose his control of hiding his Faunus traits, the familiar black fuzz lining his eyes, the autumn color piercing through the dark hair surrounding his eyes, his nose taking in all the scents of the approaching winter, his ears more sensitive to all the sounds of the surrounding forest, and his claws digging into the floor when he sat down. He felt what was left of the bones and muscles from his tail moving back and forth at random as it used to when he would idle.

He closed his eyes and breathed deep the scent of the world around him, and disappeared into his head. He would sort this out even if it took all day. He refused to have his instincts rules him again.

Meanwhile, Team RWBY were talking with their professor, all differing degrees of worried except for Yang, she still wore the look of hurt. She was excited for showing Alex more than anyone how she fought when she was whole, and that it was thanks to him; and he had ran. To her, he had left her there like she did not matter and was having trouble seeing it any other way.

"I'm sorry, girls, but I'm no expert on Faunus' at all. I don't know what may have set of these events." Ports familiar booming voice was marred slightly with worry for his student.

"It makes no sense for him to just suddenly start acting weird." Weiss said, still heavy in thought for what may have happened. She held Ruby close after having heard that Alex's look of pure malice towards the creature actually filled her with fear. It was soon replaced with the same worry they all had, but it doesn't change the fact that Alex had scared her with just a look.

"It could've been something from his past. He was acting as if he absolutely hated that monster. Like he wanted to tear it apart just for existing." Blake added in, also grabbing at straws looking for an answer, any at all that could explain it.

"But why would he want to? I know we all want to kill Grimm, but that was my fight." Yang finally spoke, and the anger and hurt was clear to everyone.

"I don't think it's just the fight, something happened to him that we don't know yet. How common is the Grimm that Yang fought?" Weiss asked. Port pulled at his, admittedly amazing, moustache as he considered his answer.

"We have no records of that Grimm until the Fall, as if it came out solely for that event." Port answered in his normal well educated teacher mode, ensuring that everything was understood.

"So, what happened during the fall to set Alex off at the sight of just one of those things?" Ruby spoke up. She was putting the pieces together and was getting an idea of what Alex was going through, but she was still missing the crucial piece, what happened to him?

"While you guys figure that out, I'm going back to the dorm." Yang said, and without stopping for so much as a wave, she was gone through the classroom door. The rest of the team watched her go in silence as the blonde brawler disappeared behind the closing door. What they didn't know was that Yang didn't want to be alone, she wanted answers. And if Alex knew what was good for him, she'd get them. So she started her search.

Back in the classroom, the remaining members resumed their talks with Port.

"Alex was submitted to the same psych test to ensure he was okay to continue his studies. During the interviews, something did come up that we were meant to keep an eye on. He mentioned that when he made his way back home, a Grimm had torn it's way through his childhood home. He essentially lost his cool, as you kids say, and blacked out. When he woke up, the Grimm and any nearby were all reduced to ashes." Port finished, and surprisingly Ruby's eyes got even bigger than they already were.

"What if it was that same type of Grimm? What if it brought back how he felt on sight?" She was rattling off more questions, but the other two were on the same page.

"We have to tell Yang!" Ruby piped up again, and she got a nod from her other teammates before they parted ways with Port. Before they made it out of the door, he called out to them.

"Be careful if you find him. Situations like this are delicate, and the wrong words can start a chain of events that you cannot handle. Think before you speak." The girls nodded, and were off in a multicolored blur, now on the hunt for their two loose teammates.

Blake ran ahead of the group and was scouting the area near the dorms. Perched in the tree near their dorm window, she was looking for any indication that the others had been there, but found nothing. No bed disturbed, no dust unsettled, nothing to mean that someone dropped by. She cursed under her breath and leaned back against the trunk of the tree as the wind started blowing, framing her in dead orange leaves shaking precariously from their branches. She would have to start looking all over the campus, and she was praying that they didn't leave via the airships. Checking there first, she thought as she left her perch and started running towards the airdocks.

Yang, however, was heading straight into a bad situation. The roof was her favorite getaway spot too, having found it when she needed a second to compose herself after Alex had left for Menagerie. She opened the door leading to the roof, and approached the ledge of the building. It was missing its guard rail for some reason, but she enjoyed the view from a safe distance. As stressful as the day had become, she could still enjoy the view of the flanking forests as they turned from a sea of green to an ever flowing river of orange shades shining from the setting sun.

"Where'd you get to?" She wondered out loud. It was in this moment that she realized that she never really got to know Alex, she just knew she could count on him when she needed to, and had more than earned her friendship. How he acted had hurt her, yes, but knowing that it was out of his power had turned her hurt into drive to help her friend find his way back home. She just didn't know where he went when he wanted to be alone. Blake had the library, Weiss had the CCTV tower when she needed to consult her sister or check in with the family, and Ruby stuck near Team JNPR when she wanted a break. But Alex had kept it all quiet, stating that if he wanted to be alone, he didn't need them checking in on him, and the conversation ended at that. She would fix that as soon as this whole situation was fixed.

Looking around, she almost fell over when she came face to face with Alex, his eyes shut and him sitting on the ground not far from her, placing him on the left side of the roof out of the way if anyone came through, and if they weren't paying attention he could be easily missed. He had his wolf features out and seemed to be deep in thought, and his nose twitched randomly as his body unconsciously sampled the air around him.

"Alex? Hey!" She said, walking up to him, but he did not respond, just more nose twitching. She closed the distance between them and sat down cross legged in front of him, and tested a poke, then a push, but still no movement or words came from Alex. Yang huffed in annoyance and crossed her arms as she pouted to his still unresponsive face.

"You know, it hurt when you left." Yang said. Alex's nose stopped its twitching, and she continued.

"You gave me my arm back, brought me back to, well me, as much as you could. I wanted to show you how it would be, how I am. And you just left." Yang said. She couldn't see it, but Alex's breathing had quickened. She continued.

"I wanted you there, I wanted to see you happy to see me back at my full potential. I know it's selfish, but I can't help but want it." Yang had dropped her pout and was looking legitimately sad, and the colors around her had dulled, the air colder and more biting to the skin. Then Alex opened his eyes.

He looked Yang over and his body slouched from its meditative position. His back and butt hurt, but Yang needed his attention. His bed did sound lovely though.

"I wanted to be there, and I'm sure that I would've loved to see you go at it 100%, but that…monster." Alex growled the last word, savoring it in lieu of having it's throat go through his teeth instead of just a word. His eyes landed on Yang's, sorrowful amethyst meeting with the moon in his eyes. "I wanted to tear it apart. I didn't want it near you. IT WAS MI-" Alex stopped himself before his possessiveness overcame him.

"Seeing that there's more than one of those things makes my blood boil." Alex finished, looking away from Yang.

"What happened?"

Alex told Yang everything. She deserved the truth, even if it hurt to relive. He told her about him abandoning his team, how he tore through the streets of Vale looking for his parent house. He told her about the Grimm that matched the one she fought with perfectly, how he saw it in his house. How it had Ada's teddy bear in its mouth. How he awoke to every Grimm that was nearby in a smoldering heap with him lying on top of it. And through it all, Yang did not interrupt.

"I haven't seen another one, so I don't know what to do about this. I shouldn't feel possessive over a Grimm, much less anger at you of all people killing it." Alex concluded. Yang had looked away as he finished and was still inside her head and didn't give a reply. She was just as confused as he was, but she wasn't angry anymore, she had realized he didn't have any control once his instincts took control, but what bothered her now was how to help.

"I don't know what to do, other than find more and see if we can work through it." She finally said, and Alex looked at her. Surprised didn't cover his look.

"That could be suicide! Let me start with the councilor they added in here, she's supposed to be a Faunus expert as she is a Faunus, then we'll deal with the rest of it." Alex said, and Yang nodded.

"I'm going with you though." She quickly added, and Alex was about to say something against it, but the glare she had mixed with determination killed any argument he had before it left his mouth.

After their talk, they decided to head back to the dorm room and wait for their teammates to come back after Yang sent out a message giving the all clear and their location. Seconds ticked away on the clock that stayed on their shared table at the back of the room and they sat quietly. Yang was stretched out on Blake's bunk playing a game on her phone, and Alex decided to give Rose Bolero a clean. The school still frowned on carrying weapons around, but nobody's said anything yet so what's the harm?

The door creaked open as Weiss walked in, alone. She quietly shut the door behind her, and cautiously looked at Alex through her bangs; Alex could hear her heartbeat racing. She was nervous.

"Hello Weiss." Alex began, just to break the silence.

"Yo." Yang added, not putting her game down.

"Alex, are you…okay?" Weiss said, sitting down next to Alex.

"I will be, just need to speak to the councilor tomorrow. Find out what's wrong with me." Weiss nodded and looked down at her hands, balled up pale fists buried in her lap.

"You scared us a bit, Alex." Weiss began suddenly. Alex looked at her, but didn't say anything, letting her continue.

"We were worried you wouldn't come back. You can't just leave without letting us help, that's not how this team works. We've all got problems, but we do it together or not at all." Weiss looked up at Alex with serious pools of winter blue unblinking and staring deep into Alex's.

"Please don't leave us again." Weiss finished.

"I won't." Alex said, his short reply not any less genuine.

"Promise?" Weiss added, her voice sounding close to a frightened little girl trying to maintain her manners.

"I promise." Alex said, and was pulled into an ever rare hug by the platinum blonde girl. For such a small frame, she was holding a lot of power, and Alex was wondering when she'd let him breathe.

Weiss stood and straightened out her skirt, serious mode back on as she straightened her back and squared her shoulders. After a nod, she walked to the door and opened it to let Blake and Ruby in, the latter of whom was still nervous. She never did find a way to be okay with Alex scaring her, but his calm expression and small wave made every step easier for her. When he was in arms reach, she gave him a hug of her own, not as intense as Weiss, but it was so Ruby that Alex felt his heart break at having scared her, no matter the situation.

Blake stood next to them and placed a slender hand on his shoulder and gave him a nod, even though her ears were pinned back against her head, still understandably on edge after how the day has gone.

Tomorrow would be a new day, and Alex swore that he would fix this.


	17. Chapter 16 - Seeking Help

Chapter 16

The next morning, Alex was up early and was walking down the hallways towards the counselor. He figured his classes could wait while he sets this up, and he was actually excited to meet with the new councilor. The old one wasn't bad by any means, but he didn't understand Faunus tendencies in the least, and sometimes his advice was more harm than good.

The familiar halls made Alex feel calmer the further on he went, enjoying the solitude for the moment. After the previous days excitement, he didn't feel right waking his team, so he had left a note on their shared table and silently left them asleep. He had passed by many classrooms, their empty and dark state making them appear cryptic and uninviting, and outside the fields were starting to see the early coming of winter with light frost hitting the grounds and a harsh wind rocking the emerald forest off in the distance.

Before long, he was standing in front of the newly renovated office door, the smell of lacquer still coming from the newly installed door, and the name _Renee Lexington – Faunus Councilor_. Maybe it was weird that they made that distinction, but no fretting over small details. The light under the door and the sound of movement on the other side says that the person herself is inside, getting ready for her day. Alex lets out a breath as he braces himself, and then he knocks on the door.

The sound resounds on the inside of the office, and the movement stops for a second before a female voice sounds on the other side.

"Just a second, I'll be right there." The voice is soft, but mature with a hint of kindness mixed in, an expert already even from behind a door. The sound of movement kicks in again with sounds of drawers opening and closing and chairs sliding in place before the door opens, and the person on the other side was well outside of Alex's expectations.

The woman that greeted him was indeed a fox, and by that she was a fox Faunus, red and white ears ending in a black tip atop her crimson hair cut into a bob cut resulting in bangs framing the side of her face, deep blue eyes staring out at him as well as a kind smile, a red tail ending in a white flared tip sweeping around the floor. She had slightly tanned skin, hidden under a tight blouse and black miniskirt, long legs topped off with heels. If not for her working for Beacon, she looked around his age, but that wasn't possible.

"Hello, how may I help you?" She asked in that same soft voice as she met him in the hall but left the door open, her hands cupped in front of her as her ears twitched forward; a sign that he had all of her attention.

"I was told that you can help me with some problems I've been having, was wanting to give it a try." Alex said, feeling a little uneasy asking a stranger for help before even introducing himself. The counselor nods her head and welcomes him inside. Her office was rather large, but it was full of furniture. The stereotypical desk sitting against the back wall with enough room for her chair between the desk and the far window that overlooked the front of Beacon, great view of the statue that occupies the square. Her walls were covered in a floral print wallpaper, colored in a brighter purple, almost pinkish in color, and the floor was hard wood that looked cleaner than the rest of the campus. All the walls were covered with couches and tables, plenty of sitting room for group sessions, and shelves containing large volumes of books hung from the walls, and a single ceiling fan works full service as a light and for air circulation; and the air smells of cinnamon.

The door closes, and she guides him to the desk and sits him in front of it, her taking her place on the other side and brings up the holo computer built into the desk. A few keystrokes later, she was into her work terminal and starting up a program as she spoke.

"So, what's been the matter?" She asks simply and waits for his reply.

"I haven't been able to control my instincts lately, and it's kicked into high gear when Professor Port had us challenge that new breed of Grimm they found." Alex began. As he retold what had happened the day before, Renee stayed silent, taking in every word without interruption. As Alex finished, Renee typed a few things on her terminal and minimized it back into her desk and out of the way.

"Instincts are always a very delicate matter, and with your situation as it is: being a survivor of the fall, no immediate family on record and being on a team full of humans, you're in a very delicate position. But I can help you with your issue as long as we stick together. Let's set up a dedicated time and day to meet and monitor your progress." Her smile never went away, and it was starting to rise some sense of unease in Alex, but this is what he was here to fix, so he agreed and they set the times to meet for the following month up until the holidays came. A few introductions and some small talk later, Alex was out of her office and heading back to the dormitory. The talk was oddly draining on him, so he decided to skip out on class for the day and just rest.

When he got back, the dorm was empty, the girls must have taken off towards class and he missed them, so he took the opportunity to get into his pajamas and into bed, the soft sheets so inviting as he fell quickly to sleep.

Ruby was bored senseless in Port's class, even doodling into her notes wasn't enough to save her. She'd been feeling antsy all day and was zoning out at random points during the day, much to Weiss' annoyance.

She was getting more and more bothered by what's going on with Alex. Even though he left a note, he didn't send any updates so that left her imagination to fill in the blanks where he couldn't, and her kind nature immediately put him in trouble. Even when Weiss told her she was being silly and to just wait, the wait itself was bothering the speedster. She had already gotten in trouble for texting in the middle of class to get a response from him, but nothing came back.

Port's lesson was dragging on longer than normal, primarily from her waiting anxiously for the bell to ring, and she could've swore she saw the clock tick backwards for a minute. However her anxiety wasn't just hers, but Blake's as well. Yes she was more hidden about it than Ruby, but she wanted to find out what's been going on in his head as much as the next person and the boring lecture did not help at all as she stared at the digital clock displayed on her desk. Yang had been trying to pass her notes, but all that was returned was a glare and a shake of the head, then she'd return to the clock willing it to go faster.

When the bell sounded, there was a red and black blur that tore out of the classroom as Blake matched Ruby's speed, and together they darted down the hallways until they came the the new counselor's room. When they stopped, they took a moment to gather their breathe, and Ruby knocked on the door. It took all of one second for the door to open showing Renee standing on the other side of the door.

"Hello? How can I help you?" She asked, coming into the hallway and beckoning them into the room, where they took seats on one of the few couches in here with her sitting across from them in a chair she brought over.

"Sorry for intruding, but what can you tell us of Alex's condition?" Blake led, her cat ears wilting a little at having to state that Alex had a problem.

"I'm sorry, but I must keep these matters private." The lady replied shortly. Ruby sat forward in her seat and spoke with clear intent.

"He's a member of my team, and if there's anything we need to do, or can help with we need to know." Blake hadn't heard Ruby this serious since she had to threaten Adam to get him away from her and Yang.

The woman paused for a second and her ears flicked around as she thought about her next action, Ruby not letting up her stare at all. The woman then stood from her seat and walked over to her desk, turning on the computer as she sat down. She began typing away quickly on her computer and within seconds, Ruby's and Blakes scrolls were vibrating. She had sent them what notes she had so far on Alex's condition.

"With your help, we'll be able to resolve this, but implore you to study through those notes no matter how they make you feel. If you really want to help your friend, then you'll need to follow my lead." She said, her own commanding tone taking place as she gave out her instructions. Blake and Ruby nodded in acceptance and left her office shortly after.

Meanwhile, Weiss and Yang had gone back to the dorm, Yang promising to help Weiss with whatever work she needed done just to get the smaller woman to be quiet. When they entered, they saw Alex peacefully sleeping, and went about silently unpacking their work and settling in for a long study session.

They were in the middle of studying the next segment of algebra when Blake and Ruby returned, getting immediately shushed when they came in by the white and yellow girls. They took their place on Blake's bunk and pulled out their scrolls, looking through the given information. The first phase of the counselor's plan was to test under what situations would his instincts kick in, to see if there's a common occurrence that they can prepare for, and that was all that would be discussed in the current notes.

The first phase is isolation, her team would need to leave him alone for at least a day to see where his pack mentality leads him. Already Ruby didn't like the plan, she wanted to handle this as a team, so the thought of leaving him alone did nothing to help her situation. The next part is slow integration back to the team, again to test his pack mentality and see if a similar situation can occur. The last one and the most risky, was exposure in a controlled environment to the Grimm in question, preferably in one of Ports classes.

The more the girls read on, the less they liked the plan, but they didn't have any other plans to try and fix what's wrong with him.

Yang and Weiss looked away from their work to see the conflicted looks on their teammates faces. Weiss took initiative and motioned for the rest of the team to join her outside the dorm, and they did so as quietly as they could, only the squeak of the door making a sound as they filed into the hallway.

"Alright, now, what is going on?" Weiss said as soon as the door was closed. She leaned up against the back wall and was staring at Blake and Ruby, not trying to accuse but it's all in the tone.

"We went and saw the counselor that Alex went to, and she shared her plan with us, and we're not going to like it." Ruby said quietly, sounding like she was in trouble. She never did like sharing bad news, but she was duty-bound as their leader to share the news. Blake noted her distress and jumped in to help her, noticeably better with delivering bad news.

"The first phase of her plan is we isolate Alex...away from us." her voice dropped at the last part, but she held fast so that Ruby didn't have to do it. When the news reached the other girls ears, Yang's eyes went red and Weiss looked even more upset than she always did.

"What kind of plan is that?! How can we help if we're not there?" Yang said, almost loud enough to echo down the hall, and she was being shushed by her little sister.

"We don't like it anymore than you do, but what else can we do?!" Ruby said in a whisper and standing up to Yang, trying to rein her in. Seeing the distress in her younger sister's eyes, Yang quelled her rising anger and her eyes took on that familiar amethyst they always do.

"Alright then, how do we do that then?" Yang said, finally giving in and realizing nobody had a plan B, not this time.

"I think we need a mission, without Alex." Ruby said, and silence fell on the group.


	18. Chapter 17 - Fighting Back

The following morning, Alex awoke to an odd sight, the dorm not having its normal morning hustle around, no half dressed dorm mates, no lectures about focusing on education from Weiss, no early morning crumb rain from Ruby's bunk as she ate cookies for breakfast; it was completely still and foreign to him after so much time with them.

Checking the nearby clock, he saw that he was up on time, so maybe they got an early start on him. Getting out of bed and running through the shower, enjoying the hot water as it's usually gone by the time he got a turn, he was in his school uniform and walking down the halls to his next class, Remnant History taught by Ms. Goodwitch herself.

Sitting in his seat, he was overcome by a sense of isolation. Normally behind him would be Team JNPR, and surrounding him would be Team RWBY, but instead there were eight empty seats around him, isolating him from the rest of the class.

The lesson started, and he was still sitting alone. He knew that Team JNPR had a mission that would go well into the next week, but that didn't explain where his team went. And without him above all. It was bothering him enough that he didn't notice his teacher call on him and the awkward silence had already set on the class waiting for him to answer, and a stern glare from his teacher.

"I'm sorry, I missed the question, what was it?" He said, not even attempting an excuse.

"Fine," Glynda cut down the glare she had and repeated the question for him. "Why does the island of Menagerie matter so much to the Faunus?"

"As it stands now, Menagerie is a safe haven for all Faunus-kind, a place we can go and not worry about humans mistreating us. Other than that, it was given to us after our help during the great war. Even if it is small, it's home." His final words coming from the heart as images of Ghira and Kali flashed through his mind, their warm smiles heavily missed especially now.

"A good answer, but do refrain from daydreaming during my class." Glynda said before moving on with the lecture. Alex did zone out though, his mind running through what might have triggered his teams disappearance.

At first he thought that something was going on with Yang, but nothing could come to mind now that Adam was long since dead and gone. Weiss might have been dealing with some issues in Atlas, but nothing the Schnee's do isn't made public knowledge almost immediately like when Winter came to Beacon and was greeted with a mob of people. Maybe they made an emergency run for cookies for Ruby? The last time she went a day without cookies, the whole team ran the length of the Emerald Forest because she was in a mood.

Or worse, what if Blake was captured by the White Fang again, and the other's are having a hard time getting her free.

The sound of the bell going off broke him from his destructive thinking and back to reality: sitting in a classroom having missed the whole lecture, if Weiss were here he'd be getting an earful.

Standing from his seat, he was struck with an idea, and he'd need Glynda for it. Approaching her desk, he was greeted by that trademark glare from her.

"Ah, Alex, I hope you didn't miss too much of today's lecture." She started, well aware of him being distracted pretty much the whole class.

"Sorry Professor, but I have a problem that I'm hoping you could help me with."

"Oh yeah? And what would that be?" She stood from her seat and leaned against the edge of it, giving him her undivided attention.

"My team. They weren't there when I woke up and they missed a whole class just now. And I haven't heard anything from them and no notes."

"Well, last I heard, they were going on mission with Professor Port." She replied, putting her index against her chin and looking partially in thought.

"Without me?"

"Well it was a weird request from Ruby, but they requested that you not accompany them on this mission. Have you been fighting with your team or anything?" Glynda said, catching onto the situation and trying to be supportive in her own no-nonsense kind of way.

Dread filled Alex's body, his mind already going into high gear about ways he pushed his friends away, what might have prompted this separation.

He walked out of the classroom slowly, leaving behind a confused Glynda, and started wandering aimlessly around the school.

At the same time, the girls of Team RWBY were having a...fun time of their own. The mission they landed, with some tweaking by Ozpin, managed to get a search and destroy in the outskirts of Vale. It was a high priority mission with an immediate departure time due to how close the Grimm was being tracked near Vale. Ruby was fidgeting in her seat on the airship as the rest of her team loaded in. Yang sat down next to her and grabbed one of her sister's hands.

"What's going on Ruby?" Yang asked softly. Weiss and Blake sat in the seats across from them and shared looks of worry for their leader.

"I know it's in the plan, but I still feel bad for excluding Alex. I hope he forgives us." Ruby admitted, starting with sorrow filled silver orbs at her sister.

"He's been pretty understanding up 'til now, I don't think that will change." Blake said, but even she was worried about when they got back. She was worried about how he would react, he would normally be calm about everything, but with his instincts overriding his sense, he could react in any way.

"We can't worry about that, plan aside, we have a dangerous Grimm to hunt." Weiss said, trying to bring the party back to the current moment, which was half an hour from the landing point, and a two mile hike to its last known location. Weiss wasn't looking forward to a two mile hike in heels, but Yang was actually itching to get back to hunting Grimm. Her practice fight had her itching to tear into some Grimm and studies weren't helping. Also her's and Ruby's wallets were a little on the empty side, so the extra lien is always a bonus.

The airship touched down in a clearing of the forest surrounding Vale, and they disembarked, stacking up their gear and letting the airship take off. As soon as it was gone, Blake started to look for traces of the enemy as Yang started loading the gear onto her back, Weiss working on her scroll to constantly communicate with Blake, and Ruby giving orders as the situation went by.

They hiked south through the dense forest, putting Vale further and further behind them until even the skyscrapers of the new business district couldn't be seen over the trees. If not for scrolls and basic survival training, getting lost would be very easy. Blake has been bouncing between trees, trying to get a birds eye view on anything out of the ordinary from the local flora and fauna; taking in smells, odd shaped tracks, anything that didn't feel right.

"Alright, we're approaching it's last known position, keep on guard team." Ruby announced, getting a thumbs up from Yang and a nod from Weiss. Blake was at the peak of a tree near their point, her ears darting in different directions as any sounds alerted her Faunus instincts of potential threats.

Ruby and Weiss walked around this new clearing where the Grimm was reported from, a few overturned trees bearing claw marks littered the scorched earth that was still smoking from contact with Grimm feet. Dead animals located nearby from when the Grimm went at them, not even hungry for food, but for the thrill of ending a life. The clearing was at least a hundred feet in radius, but almost every square foot had some form of death or destruction. Looking down on this sight, Blake felt a strange sense of uncomfortableness, maybe even some intimidation at what they were hunting.

Intel was spotty on what type of Grimm that it was, only that it was either a rare variety, or a new breed that just popped up and figured it would live near Vale. Some witnesses said it was as tall as a building, other's said that it could phase in and out of existence, while others said that it sought all life until the area is completely barren with no survivors.

"It's acting more as a starving animal." Blake said to herself, as she kept watch over her teammates setting up camp. A flick of Weiss' wrist started the campfire, while Ruby and Yang set up a tent nearby containing their sleeping bags. All in all they were exceptionally prepared for this mission with about six days worth of food packed in with their supplies.

"Hey, Ruby, think this food will last the whole trip?" Yang asked after having set up the tent and loaded in the two coolers full of preserved the food. Ruby looked over their stored supplies and gave a slight nod. With Weiss' micromanagement skills, this food could easily push two weeks if they needed it to.

Weiss walked in after dusting off some of the smoke from her dress, taking shelter from the oncoming breeze as the sun started to fall and the glow of the fire silhouetting her.

"Well we've reached the site and we've made our base camp, might as well get comfortable for our first day. Everyone check weapons before hitting the hay, Blake has first watch, then Yang, then me, then Weiss." Ruby announced, pulling Crescent Rose and her field maintenance kit. Weiss gave a short nod and laid down on her sleeping bag.

Yang looked at her sister working on her weapon as she slipped off Ember Celica as well as her field kit and followed Ruby's example, sitting next to her the whole time. Blake was still perched in a tree above the camp, barely feeling the fires warmth from where she was but keeping a watchful eye on her teammates, all but one in attendance.

None of them wanted to talk about it, but the first mission they had together as a newly formed team felt hollow without their newest member, and he was probably pretty pissed at them for leaving without him.

Night had fallen over Beacon, and Alex was back in the dorm room. However, he was not raging, he wasn't even upset. He was just sad.

He was sitting on his bed staring into the mattress, letting the destructive thoughts set in since no one had an answer for him. He had even gone to the counselor for answers, but she didn't have any idea why his team up and left without him.

 _They probably realized they didn't need you._

His brain was his worst enemy right now, tearing into his insecurities like a rabid animal at fresh game. His mind ran him through so many scenarios of the girls leaving him, deciding he wasn't worth helping him anymore, rather facing life or death without him than to trust someone so unstable. But it settled and dug in on how he felt about his past team.

 _Maybe they wouldn't wait for you to leave them to die as well._

"Leave me alone." Alex said to the air, clutching at his aching head and praying for sleep to come as easily as it normally does.

 _Right now, that Grimm is probably tearing through Ruby as Yang watches, and you're here feeling sorry for yourself._

Alex wanted to rip and tear through the dark shadow's of his mind, manifesting as himself in front of him, a pure destructive devil of himself bathed in shadow and smelling of blood. The figure was standing over him, looking down on the once proud wolf Faunus like prey, baring its fangs ready to dig in again.

 _Her last words were probably your name, wondering where you were. Just like with your last team, you let them be fed right to the Grimm; and your family._

Alex didn't want to believe it, but he had no proof against it otherwise. The apparition of his hurting mind sat down on his bed in front of him, it's twisted grin and burning red eyes staring down at him. The dark figure reached its hand, a dark mirrored version of Alex's own claws, and wrapped them around his throat, squeezing harder and harder, forcing the air from his body and seizing his movement.

This felt too real for it to be a trick of the brain, he was under attack!

Before the situation could get worse, Alex revealed his own claws and took a swipe at the ghostly form before him, wounding the creature as it let out a possessed roar in pain and frustration. Whatever it was, he could hurt it, and it couldn't compete against the original.

"You have no idea what you're talking about monster." Alex said, his voice barely above a growl, no, a quelled roar as his frustration peaked. His eyes took on their dark rings autumn, senses heightened and the animal within not taking over, but helping to fight the monster that's invaded his home.

"They may not be here, but they're stronger than some Grimm, and they wouldn't leave me without a good reason!" Alex finished, and the monster flinched at Alex's resolve.

"Now leave here, or I swear i'll tear you apart." A loud roar followed Alex's words, one that shook the very walls, and the monster disappeared into the shadows. The sense of foreboding, of shame and loneliness left his shoulders as the room took on its familiar glow.

"They'll be back, just have to be patient." Alex said into the air, hoping the words would echo back to him and ring true on his conscience. But it was still sticking to him, how did that monster get in? Where did it come from? One thing he knew for sure, it'll be back.

The girls of RWBY were having their own trouble sleeping. All of them had their own demons plaguing their minds, all from guilt over just leaving their friend. During their time together as a team, Alex had become kind of a big brother to the group and all girls treated him as such, and it made it hurt more when they started playing out their own versions of how Alex would react when they got back.

Weiss, as the first to sleep was the first to experience this stress. Her mind gave way to the walls of Beacon again, dimmed slightly due to the nighttime setting cast over the school, and an ominous breeze went over the school, blowing her long alabaster ponytail around. Her eyes focused on the front of the school, it's large statue welcoming her with Alex sitting on a bench right in front of it. He was hunched over, head resting on his knuckles and didn't seem to notice her yet.

"Alex? How are we back at Beacon? We were on a mission!" Weiss said, not putting the pieces together immediately. Alex's head rose from his hands, and he stared deep into Weiss, immediately she was on guard, the look in his eyes not something she had ever had. His glare highlighted by the moon's light reflecting from his harsh autumn eyes, staring at her.

"You're back where you know you should be. With me." He said, a low, gutteral voice tearing through Weiss' ears making her flinch. He started walking towards her, and every step made her withdraw even more, taking a step back of her own.

"Now you're afraid of me too?" Alex said, a twist of his head as he spoke adding to Weiss' discomfort.

"You're not Alex, where is he?!" Weiss said, finally standing her ground and convinced that this wasn't him. He wouldn't terrorize her like this.

"Right now, probably cursing your name." He replied with a smile. Weiss dropped her gaze for but a second before he made his move. In a dark blur, he was behind her, restraining her arms and whispering in her ear.

"Did you really think a Schnee deserved to have ANY friends? You drove Alex away, and before long the whole team will leave you too."

Before the demon could continue, a swirling glyph freezing the surrounding area appeared beneath them, and the demon couldn't run in time. It stood frozen where it was holding her, and she removed herself from it's now frozen grasp. It's blood red eyes staring through a thin layer of ice, its prison for as long as Weiss wanted it.

"You really need to learn your audience. I know my team. I know Alex. And he would never, EVER hurt me or the team. And as for the team leaving, we've all been through hell and then some for each other, there's nowhere else any of us would rather be than by each other's side. Including Alex!" Weiss roared her last sentence before drawing her trusty Myrtenaster and training it on the still frozen demon, and she could've swore she saw fear pass through those blood moon eyes wearing a shell of a disguise as one of her best friends.

Before any other words could be said, before it could attempt to free itself, Weiss danced. Her dance a fatal show for any monster or demon caught in her movements, her swords lashing out at calculated points, stabbing and ripping through limbs and bone with no delay as she carved the demon to pieces, frozen chunks falling to the floor and shattering against the ice covering the ground.

After tearing the monster to pieces, she sheathed Myrtenaster and straightened out her outfit and ponytail, ever the person of elegance as a white light enveloped her and her surroundings. When she opened her eyes again, she saw Blake waking Yang with a loving kiss, stolen among a tense situation as they were on an active hunt, and tagged out with her partner as she laid down in her sleeping bag for her turn resting.

Before sleep could take her, she saw the smile that Weiss had, and was drawn to asking.

"Weiss, is everything okay?"

"I had a dream about Alex, and I can't wait to get back to Beacon." Weiss said, her smile never falling, and Blake was happy that Weiss could still be so open around her team.

"Me neither, i'm going to sleep now." Blake said with a yawn as she rolled over and was almost immediately fell asleep.

She closed her eyes and felt herself descend to sleep, but when her eyes opened again, she found herself in a familiar red forest, the ash black trunks leading to bleeding red leaves swaying on a breeze smelling of honey and soot. The floor of the forest was as red as the leaves that blended into the sunset sky above, and before her was a fallen trunk, cleared of its leaves and a faded silver color having what was left of its life sucked dry.

Blake walked up to the trunk and felt it's texture under her fingers, the sensation as if it was right in front of her, the breeze cementing her place in this scene. Somehow she was back in Forever Fall, with no memory of how she got there.

"Hello, my darling." An all too familiar voice ripped through her ears and sent a painful jolt through her heart, filling it with fear and dread. Adam's voice was talking to her, and she was willing herself to turn around and face him, and all that was stopping her was her fear of him.

Somehow, she turned to face where that voice was coming from, only to be greeted by Alex, his colors way off as they had faded to nothing but shadow, with bleeding red eyes staring her down.

"Alex? What is-" Her voice caught in her throat as surrounding Alex was her fallen team, all bearing marks of his claws and sword tearing them apart, their last moments of fear and pain forever burned into their blood covered faces.

"This is what I am, my darling." Alex said, Adam's voice coming out instead of the deep tones she knew Alex to have. She ran past him to her fallen team and started with Yang, holding her blonde head in her hands and looking over the destruction that covered her body, red seeping into her famous golden locks as her large eyes stayed forever closed. And as she saw the love of her life dead in her arms, Blake wept

"Why did you do this?" Blake asked through the tears. The figure stood right behind her and let out a low laugh.

"This is what I have become, and this is what you deserve. Remember, I said I'd destroy everything you love." The voice of Adam slowly faded to be Alex saying those hated words, and Blake looked back at him with pure hatred in her eyes, pupils narrowed to slits and fangs bared, she grabbed Gambol Shroud and stood as tall as she could and stared the shadow down.

"I'm tired of seeing this, something that maybe Adam could be capable of, but not Alex. Alex is kind and gentle with all of us even when he's not having the best day. He may have some trouble controlling his instincts, but he'd never hurt us! He'd never hurt me!" Blake quieted on the last part as the realization cleared her mind, removed the scene of carnage from around her and seemed to breathe life into the forest again, renewing the breeze with a pleasant smell of fresh honey and the coming of fall, and the shadow cowered again before the proud Cat Faunus baring her weapons at the monster.

A black ribbon wrapped around it's core and pulled it in close to Blake, trapping it's arms and forcing it to watch as Blake split into many copies of herself, all burning with fire dust infused by her weapon, and they all slowly closed in around it as Blake herself walked away. It's face held confusion, then fear as all the flaming Blake's placed a hand on a part of him, and summarily detonated. And in a loud flash, an intense instant, the figure was reduced to dust, and Blake was walking out of her dream.

She really needed to see Alex now, to make sure he was okay.

When she awoke, the tent was empty, and the calm morning sun was going through the tent, warming the interior and almost pulling her back to sleep. She willed herself awake and pushed up on her arms, flexing her cat ears that had pinned back in her sleep and let out a small yawn before she remembered where she was, and scurried out of the tent holding Gambol Shroud at the ready.

In the clearing, the other girls were gathered around the smoldering embers of their campfire, long since dead and burning it's last. The girls locked eyes with her, and Yang waved her over to sit by her, and as soon as Blake had, Yang had both hands wrapped around her in a protective embrace.

"Blake, did you dream of Alex too?" Weiss broke the silence, and Blake gave a weak nod.

"So we all did." Ruby chimed in, hands messing with her skirt as she stared into the dying fire.

"But that's too weird to be a coincidence." Yang chimed in, rubbing Blake's ears as she spoke, soothing for both her and Blake.

"I don't think it's some coincidence, " Ruby said, as she stood and kicked dirt over the embers, effectively killing the fire. When she caught the confused look from her teammates, she continued. "There are many type of Grimm that came out during the fall, some we didn't even know. What if our dreams are related to the Grimm? What if we already found it? Or it found us?" Ruby finished, and Weiss finally moved as well, digging through her bag and finding a thick binder. Flipping through it, she came to the same one that Yang had fought during her return to form, having researched it as much as she could before the current hunt. She found it's page and started going through her notes.

"Got anything?" Ruby said after a few moments.

"Some reports show that people that come in contact with the monster face a degree of anxiety and have constant nightmares and bouts with paranoia. They always feel on edge thinking it had followed them home, and the fear attracts even more Grimm. Some even saw a shadowy figure playing on their...fears..." Weiss continued on after processing the last bit of information, but the beginning sparked Blake's interest.

"What if, instead of instincts, Alex is just worried for us? Yes he's the new pack leader since his parent's passed, but it may be those same ones that make him so protective of us. He's not overreacting due to his mind, but because of the Grimm he found. He's worried it will find us." Blake trailed off on the last part, and silence fell on the group as they looked to each other. If this were the case, then the counselor's advice would only hurt.

"How do we stop this?" Yang said.

"The only known way is to kill the Grimm responsible." Weiss stated.

"But I killed the one that Port had." Yang crossed her arms as she racked her brain.

"And he killed the one that took down his home." Blake added.

"Then that means there's another one, out here with us. The hunt ends tonight, and that monster along with it." Ruby stated, and the girls readied their weapons for the coming hunt.


	19. Chapter 18 - Reunion

The hunt was on in force, Blake tracking any sense of disturbance she could, Yang close by in case she was ever under attack, and Ruby and Weiss taking up the rear. The usual fun that came with the hunt was absent in the girls eyes, only leaving behind determination and anger. Their dreams still haunting their waking hours only fuelling their need to destroy this monster and free themselves, then and only then can they return to Beacon to help Alex with his personal demons.

Blake stopped ahead of them and dropped low, a split second later her team did the same as they all listened for any disturbance, Blakes ears darting in different directions until they locked onto something solid. She turned her body towards the noise that only she could hear and drew Gambol Shroud, looking over to make sure the others had theirs drawn and ready.

A silent breeze caused the only movement, a rustle of leaves and the movement of grass, but the girls stood perfectly still.

Then it struck, the same large monster that was in Port's office, but off somehow. Instead of a pristine skull, it was chipped and cracked and bearing scorch marks, and one of it's powerful legs carried a limp, and black ooze was coming from a large slash in its leaving behind a black trail. But it's strike was still powerful and precise as it jumped out from behind the foliage and took a swipe that easily could've reached all of them had they not dodged out of the way. Despite its wounds, it stood tall challenging the intruders to its forest.

The girls did not falter in the slightest, all charging in to pound in their portion of anger into its blackened flesh, more than willing to bring its war into its home.

With a mighty uppercut, Yang sent the monster flying before it could react, only giving a roar in agony as her fist buried itself in its chest wound before it left the ground. While in the air, two blurs both black and white danced across it at incredible speeds, giving it fresh cuts and tears to its body as Blake and Weiss cut and slashed whenever they flew by it, bouncing off of Weiss glyphs which had a layered speed glyph on top of them as well. In a matter of seconds, it was crashing back down to earth steadily leaking its black blood onto the grass, killing it instantly. Steam came from its nose as it breathed its final breaths.

Not willing to wait, Ruby was upon it with Crescent Rose in hand, and with a mighty cleave powered by several spent shells as it tore through the air, she silenced its breathing forever more as the blade went straight through its head and body with no resistance.

All it took was five seconds, and they had felled the beast. Wasting no time Weiss documented the kill on her scroll and called in for their airship to pick them up.

They were finally heading home.

Back at Beacon, Alex sat on his bed, looking into his scroll, watching his teammates aura levels to ensure they weren't in danger, and a smile was plastered on his face at the sight of the full green bars next to all of their pictures.

"They're fine." Alex said to himself, happy that no monster decided to plague his thoughts again. He put his scroll away and pulled out his weapons maintenance kit and got to work cleaning and repairing Rose Bolero. The last thing he wanted was an upset Ruby when they got back, especially over not having done preventative maintenance.

Time passed quickly as he worked, losing himself in the finer parts of maintaining his weapon, as well as being lost to the memories of when he and Ruby came up with the plans for it. He felt just as happy as he did the first time her eyes lit up when she took in their finished product, never getting tired of that excited smile.

Moving on to his next 'errand', he dug out the volume of 'Ninjas of Love' that he got on his night out with Blake, again feeling a sense of happiness remembering her flustered expression as he joked about asking her questions about the book in public. Thankfully she realized it was all in good fun.

He made it about halfway through the book before his eyes felt heavy and he was losing daylight, so he begrudgingly put the book down and dug out his textbooks to get a headstart on the oncoming work for his Remnant History class.

The daylight eventually led to moonlight, the only light in the room the desk lamp that overlooked several books and a pile of papers of research material before Alex came up for air, an all to familiar stiffness in his spine from hunching over the work, and a roar in his stomach that reminded him he skipped all of the day's meals. With that in mind, he packed up his books, stretched as much as his body would let him, and exited the dorm heading to the cafeteria to scrounge up some food.

As he left the dorm, he collided with something solid, yet oddly soft, and was met with the floor as he fell back. Cursing under his breath, he looked up into a solid mane of golden hair as it's owner wagged it in his face and laughed at Alex trying to wave it away. When the mirth finally left them and Alex was hefted to his feet, he was flanked on all sides by his once missing team; all of them sporting big smiles and reeking of a good hunt that didn't allow for showers.

"Not to be rude, and I did miss you guys, but showers first please?" Alex said, covering his still sensitive nose. Weiss huffed and stormed off into the dorm and within moments the shower could be heard running full blast. Yang and Blake patted him on the shoulder as they passed, also entering the dorm following the ice queen, leaving only a noticeably nervous Ruby standing alone with Alex in the hallway.

"What's up Ruby?" Alex asked, grabbing her shoulder gently to get her attention. He was greeted with that normal disarming smile when Ruby was about to lie saying everything was fine. A stern look was all it took for Ruby to say how she felt.

"You must have been really mad. I'm sorry." Ruby began digging the tip of her boot into the ground, waiting on Alex to start yelling at her, showing that he was mad.

"Just worried once I got my head together. Hopefully next time, you'll bring me with you so that I'm not worried about you guys coming home safe." Ruby raised her eyes to look at him incredulously, admittedly expecting a talk that was very different and alot more yell-y than it was.

"Now, I wanna hug you guys, but my nose won't let me. Go get cleaned up please." Alex finished in a joking manner, earning him a playful punch from Ruby as she disappeared inside with her team. Alex lingered in the hallway, reveling in the sounds of the busy dorm room behind the thick door that he was still standing in front of. He was thankful that they were back, but his stomach was still empty, and his hunger won out. A quick message to Ruby's scroll and he was off to the cafeteria, hoping there was still food available.

Walking through the thick double doors leading to the expansive dining hall, the normal noise wasn't there during this late hour, and Alex made a beeline towards the food tables, and sure enough they had cold remains of dinner from earlier. Grabbing a plate, nuking it, and finding a spot at a table to eat at, he started tearing into the multiple dishes he had grabbed.

Precious quiet moments passed in silence as he ate, until a weight joined him on the lunch table. Looking over, there was Yang with a comparably filled tray and a satisfied look on her face. Looking back at the lunch line, the others were loading their trays, even Weiss taking large amounts of meats and sweets that earned her some jokes from her girlfriend, and before long, the area around him was filled with the freshly cleaned up and starving Team RWBY, enjoying a night time meal with their missing teammate.

Food was eaten in silence for a while, all of them with their trays full of almost cold food but it was wolfed down all the same, even Weiss dropped some of her manners at the spread of different rice and meats in front of her, digging in with fork and hand at the same time. When the food was dwindling, and the silence was creeping in a bit too much, Alex finally spoke.

"So, how did the mission go?" He gave them room to speak by taking another spoonful of porridge. Ruby swallowed down her bit, and looked to regret the amount of it for a second before replying.

"It was just a standard hunt, a Grimm living on the outskirts of Vale. We found it, and it turned out to be an older version of what Port had in the classroom. We killed it." Ruby finished as she held out her fork in victory.

"It did have some abilities we weren't prepared for though." Blake said while covering her mouth with her napkin, more to block the scent of tuna than anything.

"Like what?" Alex's curiosity came through strong, any knowledge he can have would help a ton towards wiping them off the face of remnant. The girls looked between themselves, unsure of how to respond before Yang went for it.

"If you come in contact with it, it basically manifests your insecurities and fears and pokes at it to make you break. I guess because the sadness and anger would bring more Grimm to help it fight."

"What did you see?" Alex said, innocently enough, but the reaction was a bit pained at the very least.

"We saw, you…" Weiss said, averting her gaze. Alex wore the signature look of confusion before speaking again.

"I'm going to guess here. A dark version of me poking at anything that can get a rise out of you."

All the girls looked at him with eyes as wide as dinner plates, Ruby's mouth dropping open showing half eaten food and earning a glare from Weiss that seemed created just for closing that mouth. Before the question could be asked, Alex elaborated.

"I had the same thing last night, a messed up version of me trying to break me. Didn't work, though. Just made me angry more than anything. I'm guessing due to my run-in with one during the fall." Alex finished, then went back to his food, favoring the steak he grabbed and was saving for last.

"But anything we found said that after it's dead, the visions stop! We haven't had anything like that since we killed the monster." Weiss said, putting down her utensils and entering full analytical mode.

"Maybe results vary." Alex replied simply. It was a bit true though since information on this new Grimm was scarce to say the least, it could affect everyone differently. Either way, this calmed Weiss down and she went back to her nearly gone food. Silence fell on the party again as they ate, but something was bugging Alex. He felt like he was being watched, and in a room flanked on all sides with giant windows it shouldn't feel too off, but it felt like it was only him being watched. _Hard._

Looking around, at first he didn't see anything now that night was falling and the room was getting more and more dark, straining even his Faunus eyes; however, his eyes did land on a pair of beady red eyes, boring into him with an unflinching gaze from the darkness. He couldn't make out it's shape but he was sure it wasn't a Grimm, but it was weird that it was staring at them so intently. And as soon as he had noticed, the eyes were gone and so was the feeling.

"Hey, you alright?" Yang said, bumping him and pulling him out of his trance.

"Yeah, just had a weird feeling but it's gone now." Alex said, eating the final pieces of his steak and waiting until everyone else was finished. Thoroughly satisfied from their meal, they decided to head to bed for the night, Blake being the first one asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. Alex sat on his bunk and watched the girls doing their final routines as they went to bed. He locked eyes with Ruby, who returned that big goofy grin of hers before she disappeared in a burst of rose petals and his torso started hurting slightly as a weight landed on it.

Looking down was a very satisfied looking Ruby locking him into the biggest hug she could and looking up with happy silver eyes. Once Alex recovered, he did something that he realized he rarely ever did whenever the girls would hug him, he hugged back and earned a gasp from Ruby. He let her go and she stood up rigid and blinking rapidly as her brain hurried to process what happened, and he interrupted her thoughts with a finger jab to the forehead, making her go cross-eyed.

"Good night, Ruby." Alex said, a wearing a small smirk as Ruby huffed, only to quickly give way to a smile of her own as she walked away to her bunk.

As they all laid down for the night, and sleep was about to claim Alex again, he felt the eyes on him again as he drifted off to dreams.


	20. Chapter 19 - An Unexpected Guest

The team went about their studies like normal, missions over and quiet nights followed their ordeal as they settled into the monotony of their daily lives. Time passed quietly as the school became covered in a thick blanket of snow, falling in sheets from the grey sky over the colorful city and school. Seemingly overnight, christmas decorations filled the halls, walls and streets of Beacon, and were mirrored on every corner of Vale. More often than not, Blake was caught by an overly excited Yang under the mistletoe and was dragged into a very public display of affection as Ruby laughed and Weiss scolded them. Alex would just wait until it was done and follow the group, but wouldn't say a word.

This would be the first time he would go through the winter holidays without his team, his family, or his little sister; and he was feeling the isolation now more than ever.

He would look out the window to the dorm and stare into the white snow, picturing the times he spent with Ada as she built snowmen, made snow angels and attempted to throw snow at Alex, trying to catch him off guard, all while wearing her wolf jacket that she got one year and continuously wore to feel closer to her big brother.

Worse yet, he would slip into memories of spending the first winter with his new teammates, all celebrating a different winter holiday so they would just spend one whole day celebrating them all together before they separated to be with family. Of course this led him to wondering how their families were this time of year, that one empty chair at every table where there should be a plate, jokes, a person. It wasn't his mind attacking him like it did before, but he did feel that they should be here with him.

"Hey Alex? What's wrong?" A small innocent voice came from his side, tugging on his sleeve and pulling him from his thoughts. At first when he looked, he saw Ada, looking up with her ever young and hopeful eyes, only to blink and see Ruby and her look of concern, a furrowed brow over worried silver eyes and a hand clutched to her chest. Alex shook his head and grabbed her hand in his, her frozen hand being warmed up by his extreme body heat and he knelt slightly to look his team leader in the eyes.

"Just missing my friends, and my family." Alex was working on telling them how he was more often, leaving them less in the dark. However doing so made his feel like he was whining more often than not, so he was trying to find a balance. Ruby nodded and placed her other hand on top of his.

"I can't imagine how that must feel for you. We're here if you need anything." Ruby said, her familiar smile and positivity overcoming the cold to shine through.

"Well, I was thinking of visiting them at the memorial they built, would you mind coming with?" Alex had recalled the monument that Beacon had built to honor those that died during the fall, now situated in the middle of Vale where it's great fountain used to be, now is a melancholy reminder not to forget those that they lost. Ruby pondered for a second, then nodded her head.

"Just need to call Weiss real quick, I'll meet you by the airship after I get into a warmer outfit." Alex nodded and Ruby started walking away towards their dorm, already pulling out her scroll from her pajama bottoms. It was at this moment that Alex realized that it was barely passed noon at this point, but he didn't remember when he woke up. All he now knew was that he was stuck in La-La land in his mind for at least an hour, and that the others were probably going about their days.

Alex already had everything in order, so he started the short walk to the airship dock and got the tickets ready for his and Ruby's departure, then picked a nice bench, defrosted it a bit with controlled fire burst of his semblance, and sat waiting.

The snow fell around him in thick icy sheets, making it hard to even see past six feet ahead of him. From what he could make out, he noticed a couple of people, a man and woman walking hand in hand and huddled together for warmth, and he felt a pang of jealousy. He had never really considered dating, since he was focusing on being a huntsman, but his semblance also posed other issues. There are times he couldn't control his elements, and the last thing he wanted was to hurt someone even with just a hug, hence why he did it rarely. But that didn't mean that he never wanted it, some days he felt isolated from the teammates since they were all paired up and happy, but he was still alone at the end of the day.

Normally he'd have his team, or his sister, but the evils of the world claimed them, tore them from his care, forever.

Trying to get his head out of the darkness, he looked more out and away from the couple as they boarded their airship, and had difficulty finding anything else noteworthy of looking at. There were the occasional student heading out, and he gave the odd wave to Violet as her and Coco were heading into town, but they didn't stop for even a word. Minutes stacked up before a familiar red outline came up the hill towards him. He stood and waved at the red blur before it vanished entirely.

Alex's eyes went wide as he saw the snow part before hitting the ground as the blur blasted towards him, and the sudden impact of a small shivering frame clinging to his arm.

"Alex, warmth please!" Ruby's voice came out from a red hood pulled tight over her head. Alex chuckled a little and focused on his body, boosting it's temperature and radiating heat as his body glowed many shades of red and yellow, taking extra focus not to burn Ruby as she clung tighter and her shivering slowed to a halt. Alex looked down and took in her winter outfit, a long red trench coat with Black feathers around the neck for warmth, as dark as Nevermore feathers, and many unnecessary buckles covered the slim fitting jacket that didn't seem to be doing its job of keeping her warm well. From what he could see, she wore her normal combat boots and red socks, but instead went for tight fitting black pants, and on the back of the jacket was her familiar Rose emblem.

"Everyone's doing trench coats now?" Alex asked, pointing out her new outfit. Ruby sighed in contentment but did not move from her living radiator.

"We saw how it looks on you and found our own. Now, where we headed?" Ruby said, bringing her face up towards his. Alex pointed to a waiting airship with an annoyed looking attendant near it's hatch which was still opened and he pointed to his watch.

"Maybe we should go then?" Ruby questioned, and Alex shrugged. Walking became difficult when Ruby would not let go, so Alex was content with walking with her on his arm at least until they reached their seats in the climate controlled airship.

They took the furthest back seats they could and strapped in for the few minutes the flight would take, but it always managed to feel like it took forever. Finally, the buildings of Vale came over the horizon, crested in white just as the rest of the area was, the surrounding emerald forest only having it's namesake peeking through mountains of white slush. Lights from the buildings cutting through the sleet as their airship tore through the skies towards the docking area, coming in for a smooth stop at it's designated terminal, and Alex had to all but drag Ruby out of the airship and into the biting cold.

"So, where to?" Ruby asked through shivers and chattering teeth, Alex's small fire that he held in his hand doing little for the frozen rose. Alex held back another chuckle at her expense and led her out of the docking bay and into the deeper parts of Vale. During their walk, Ruby resigned herself to holding on for warmth against Alex's arm, but looked uncomfortable for it all the same. Passerby would remark about the tall man walking with such a small passenger, but neither paid them much mind.

Shops they had passed were either closed, or regretting not closing for the day, and the streets only had a small amount of people walking down it, their current street not holding more than two other people. The wind blew and Ruby buried herself more into Alex's sleeve, clutching desperately at any bit of warmth he could or would give.

"You know, when your a full time huntress, the cold may be more a part of your life than you'd like." Alex teased at his latest addition to his arm. Ruby raised her face and puffed out her cheeks as she pouted up at him.

"Hopefully when I'm a full-time huntress, I'll be able to have warmer clothes!" Alex shared in her laughter and focused more on the route ahead of them. Through the heavy snowfall, it was difficult to spot where the road ended and where it picked up again, but Alex knew the route as he would go whenever things weren't all topsy-turvey.

A few twists and turns led them to where they had first met, but instead of a fountain was a combination of a fountain and a mural, large crystaline objects jutting out of the waterfall that was built in and lined with flowers, all the crystals the different colors of the dust elements, and inscribed on them in gold embossed lettering that radiated against the crystal's colors were the names of all that were killed during the fall. Alex led them to the base of the fire crystal, again dragging Ruby as she took in the design of the monument.

Right from where they stood, and with a little searching more to the base of the crystal, was the names of his team, and his little sister Ada, shining it's faint golden glow for what may be forever. Ruby's eyes landed on the lettering and her antics ceased almost immediately, opting to show the utmost respect for what this place meant to her teammate and almost everyone in Vale even. She also fully realized how close she had come to Yang's name being on this wall if she hadn't shown up with Weiss in tow to help them kill Adam. The fountain opened to a platform at the base of the crystal, allowing you to walk up and be surrounded by the steaming and clear water of the fountain and approach it without ruining the monument.

Alex traced his fingers over all the names of his family and his team without a word, paying his silent respects and offering unspoken prayers for those he couldn't be there for, whom he had abandoned- there was that familiar tugging on his sleeve again.

"Hey, you never really told us how that all affected you. Have you been keeping it in? Beating yourself up again over it?" Ruby almost stated it rather than asking. If nothing else, she had a keen eye for when something was wrong with someone, even down to what it was if she took a second. Almost like a second semblance sometimes, either way she was right, and he nodded in affirmation. What he didn't expect was for his smaller leader to jump up high enough to grab his face in her hands and drag him down to her level, staring at him with serious silver eyes.

"It was nothing on you, no matter what your mind tells you. So no more beating yourself up."

"But, I left them-"

"Nope." Her grip was tightening, but her flat response was what threw him for a loop.

"You don't get it, I-"

"Nope."

"I'm not going to win, am I?"

"Nope. Not until you see that it's not all on you." Ruby said, finally smiling and letting go of his head. Alex stared down at her for a second and felt a familiar pang go through his chest, realizing it was him missing his sister, but also realizing he was living in the past rather than appreciating what he had now. Right now there was this girl who was braving the cold just to give him something to smile about and get him out of his head, who probably dropped plans with a now very frosty Ice Queen back at the dorm.

"Putting a pin in that for now, you hungry? Might as well do something before we head back." Alex said. As if on cue, Ruby's stomach emitted a roar that would've put Alex's grown man stomach to shame, maybe even shook some of the ice around them loose, and all she could do was bashful rub the back of her head as she agreed, the heavy blush probably keeping her warm right now.

They left he monument and ducked into one of the nearest buildings, a cafe that had pies, cakes, ice cream and coffee's ready to go, and with how dead it was outside, they were the only ones in line. Alex sat down with his coffee and Ruby sat across from him with a hot cocoa in hand and a small box that she also ordered. Opening it, Alex expected cookies, but instead it was a batch of fresh looking strawberries. She noticed him staring.

"Yes I love cookies, but my favorite food is strawberries. Pretty sure Weiss doesn't know that yet." Ruby said with a wink as she ate one of the strawberries looking very satisfied with herself. Alex just laughed a bit and shook his head.

They slipped into comfortable silence, enjoying the warmth of the shop, the smells of the coffee, and watching the ice forming on the window all while in good company and smooth music playing over the speaker that was nice, but not worth paying attention to. Without warning, a waitress walked over to the table, and without a word, dropped a bowl of ice cream in front of Ruby, who was also caught off guard by the random treat.

"Oh, I didn't know this place did ice cream, I didn't see it on the menu." Ruby said, still staring into the frozen treat.

"Me neither, and we didn't order it." Alex replied, and he started looking around for the waitress, but nobody stuck out to them. The people at the counter were staring at them though, and the look on Alex's face that bore pure confusion prompted them to respond.

"If you were going to bring your own stuff, why did you come here?" The elderly man said behind the counter.

"We didn't, one of your waitresses brought it over." Alex responded, and this time the old man behind the counter was caught off guard.

"All my waitresses are in the back, keeping warm and taking a break. Nobody ordered it for you and we don't sell that type of ice cream here. Or any for that matter." With that the elderly man went back to his errands and mumbling under his breath.

"Well since it's here, might as well dig in! You wouldn't happen to know what this type is called would you?" Ruby already had an emerald green scoop of it in her mouth as she asked her question. Alex looked down to the bowl to see Vanilla, chocolate and Strawberry flavors, and the odd Mint one in the bowl as well.

"Neopolitan, with mint added for some reason." The word Neopolitan sparked something within Ruby, making her spit out her ice cream immediately and sending the spoon to the floor as if it caught fire, but before it hit, she was on her feet with weapon drawn and scanning the location.

"Ruby, what's wrong?" Alex said, and he went back to inspecting the ice cream, but it looked normal to him.

"It can't be. Last I saw of her, she was flying off into Griffon infested skies." Ruby said to no one in particular and still scanning her surroundings. Nothing was adding up to Alex, and the pronoun game was getting old real quick. How can someone not spot a waitress that nobody there knew, and what's with the ice cream?

"I think Neo's back…" Ruby said cryptically, and Alex was still lost.


	21. Chapter 20 - High Alert

Everything was passing by in a blur to Alex and Ruby as they tore through the streets of Vale. They had a few minutes ago left the cafe they were in as fast as possible and were making a direct sprint to the airship back to beacon. Ruby was absolutely certain that if Neo was back, they didn't stand a chance without the team, so she was leading the charge back to the airship, Alex tagging along behind her trying to keep up with her abnormal speed.

Within minutes, they showed up out of breath at the front of the docking terminal, and Ruby's eyes couldn't stop darting around, seeing enemies around every corner while Alex didn't see anything but normal people.

"Ruby, tell me what's going on already." Alex said as they waited for the airship to open. Ruby was pacing around in small circles, antsy to get inside as quick as possible, and didn't seem to his voice. Alex finally had enough and grabbed her shoulder, earning a startled glare from an out of breath and freaked out Ruby.

"What?!" She almost shouted.

"What is wrong?" Alex said as gently as he could, and her glare died down, realizing she was snapping at an ally.

"Back during the fall, I went to fight a man named Roman Torchwick, but I didn't realize he had a buddy: A woman named Neo, at least that's what he called her." She paused and started to get her breath, the sprint and panic not doing much for her but she was finally calming down.

"I fought both of them, and thanks to Neo, I was going to lose, had me hanging off the side of one of Ironwood's ships. But Neo got careless, her weapon was a parasol and at those heights all I had to do was open it and she was out of the fight and alone in the sky full of Griffons. That was the last I saw of her." Ruby finished summarizing, and gave Alex a chance to speak.

"So why would she be after you now?"

"She maybe blames me for Roman's death. During our fight after Neo was gone, a Nevermore came down and ate him whole during his last rant. If i had a guess, she probably blames it on me."

"So what's so bad about this Neo person?" Alex said, still having learned nothing of this person other than they associated with criminal masterminds that like to monologue.

"Her semblance, we still don't know what all it could do, but she was able to disguise herself well enough to not only throw us off their trail a few times, but she was able to infiltrate and participate in the Vytal festival with Cinder and her crew. She was integral in the death of a very close friend to me: Penny." Saying the name seemed to reveal another side of Ruby that was rarely seen: Sad Ruby. More often than not she would put on a brave face and cheer everyone on, but in these few moments, when the memories come back to her, she feels everything ten times over.

After saying the name, and a few precious moments slipped by, Ruby was on the verge of tears, remembering Pyrrha tearing Penny to pieces with her own weapons, trying so hard to fight past Mercury but getting there just too late to do anything but watch as the life faded from her friends eyes. Just too late to stop Penny from being used as a catalyst to a much larger tragedy.

The airship finally started admitting passengers into the cabin, and Alex guided them both to that familiar seat at the back of the airship. They sat next to each other, back to the wall and would spend the whole trip scanning the rest of the passengers, looking for something out of the ordinary or any semblance of a threat or sign they were followed. If the flight before felt that it went on forever, this was easily ten times that, aware of every second, every move of a body in a seat, the seconds passed like days.

Even when the airship touched down, and fatigue was setting in, they did not drop their guard. They made sure they were the last to leave the ship, and set foot on the iced over tarmac and quickly left the crowded area and out to the familiar walled off area of Beacon's square, and finally Ruby was able to relax as they walked slowly to the dormitory. Alex looked over at his smaller leader, noticing that she was covered head to toe in snow, but also seemed so distant as to not notice. He held out his palm and focused in the center of it, causing a spark of fire to roar up in the next instant, a portable bonfire in his palm and held it before Ruby, seeking to warm her up before she got sick. Again she didn't notice until he had stopped her and made the fire a touch larger.

She extended paled, frozen hands around it and winced as the blood started flowing through them again, steam coming off of her now warm hands in wafts that blended with the steam coming from her breath.

"I don't know what we should do. We were never able to beat her before, and I only got lucky that she dropped her guard." Ruby admitted all of a sudden. Alex didn't know how to respond either, knowing nothing about this person, at least until an idea came to him.

"Can you remember anything else about her? How she looked? And this is going to sound weird but what about smell?" Ruby looked up to him and thought to herself for a moment before speaking.

"She had pink and brown hair, pale skin, and off color eyes. Like, separate colored eyes, pink and brown. She always dressed nicely, an overcoat with slacks I think, and boots and she waved around this parasol that had a hidden blade in it. Never seen her use a gun though." Ruby trailed off as she tried to remember anything else about this person.

"She's mute, but other than that...Oh wait! Maybe Yang would know. She fought Neo too!" Ruby said, and life jumped back into her eyes as she started walking again.

With renewed vigor, they reached their dorm in no time, thankful for the heat pumping around inside and the sight of their dorm room door right in front of them.

On the other side they were greeted to the other member's doing their normal routines, Blake reading, Yang trying to interrupt it for attention, and Weiss doing homework but also doing it markedly more annoyed. When Weiss locked eyes with Ruby, and noted the worry set in those silver eyes, she dropped what she was doing and went into worry mode.

"What happened?" Weiss had crossed over to Ruby and helped her out of her jacket, showing an nice red shirt with her Rose symbol crossing her core, and the material looked soft and was, of course, as red as her cloak.

"We need to talk, team meeting." Ruby said, gathering the others attention.

She went on to explaining what happened at the cafe, and more and more words just seemed to set off Yang's semblance, making the room even warmer and making Blake cuddle up to her closer absentmindedly as she focused on what had happened.

"It's a good think that Alex was there, I don't think she'd try anything when she's outnumbered." Blake said, breaking the brief silence after Ruby had finished.

"But why? Why would this...Neo, want anything to do with Ruby?" Weiss said.

"Maybe she blames me for Torchwick biting the big one. Probably doesn't know that a Nevermore did it." Ruby said, now sitting on her bunk, Crescent Rose by her side.

Yang rose from her seat, earning a huff from Blake as the warmth left her, and crossed over to her little sister.

"Nothing will happen to you, especially if we stick together. I do have some unfinished business with the little girl." Yang growled out her sentence, but never released her gentle hold on Ruby's hand, even when upset still wanting to support her sister and ensure she's okay.

"Yang, can you remember anything about her other than her appearance?" Ruby asked, remembering Alex's questions.

"Well, when we fought, I did keep wondering why I smelled ice cream." Yang said, putting and inquisitive finger to her chin as she recalled her fight with Neo.

"Ice cream? At least that will be easier to sniff out." Alex said. All the girls looked at him clearly confused.

"My nose is even more sensitive than Blake's, I'll be able to smell her if she comes close to us." Alex clarified, tapping the side of his nose with a prideful grin. Blake rewarded him with an eye roll.

"How sensitive is it, anyway?" Yang asked, interest obviously piqued.

"Well, I can tell you what Blake had for dinner today." Alex replied, and Blake's eyes immediately started darting around the room.

"Duh, tuna, that's an easy one." Yang said, not impressed.

"Nope, more than tuna, there's a hint of…" Alex leaned in close to Blake and sniffed, earning a blush from the girl in question but it was all in good fun to him.

"Something i shouldn't say in front of Ruby." Alex finished, and Blakes blush immediately rivaled Ruby's cloak. Yang fell over laughing, and Weiss gave him an incredulous look, silently asking what was wrong with im.

"What? What can't I know?" Ruby said, innocent as always and Blake dove beneath her blankets trying to seal off the world.

"But we didn't even do anything today." Yang said, sounding disappointed but still joking.

"Oh! You mean sex!" Ruby said, rocking from her perch off the corner of her bed, and everyone froze on the spot, hearing that small innocent voice say such a vulgar word like it was so easy.

"What? Weiss and I are dating too you know." Ruby said with a wink, and with that it was Weiss' turn to challenge Ruby's cloak for sheer redness, Alex could swear that steam was coming from her ears and her eyes were starting to roll back in her head. Yang however did not have the same laugh as Ruby, as she closed in on Weiss and gave her the best death glare that Alex had ever seen, pure malice behind burning red eyes that threatened one wrong move being met with swift but painful death.

"What did you do to my sister?" Yang said, her voice walking a fine line between anger and psychotic.

"What hasn't she done? She's been such a big help in that field." Ruby said, stoking the fire even more as her mischievous grin grew even larger. Yang creeped ever closer to Weiss, who while sitting on her bunk, had nowhere to go.

"Yang, I can explain." Weiss said, trying her best to stay level headed in the face of a raging Yang. Death seemed certain, as her words did nothing to stop Yang's approach, to stop that cold metallic hand from reaching out and grabbing her by the shoulder, albeit somewhat gently. It was more the touch that rattled Weiss.

Yang leaned in even closer, her steaming breath wafting into Weiss face as her terrified sapphire eyes darted around for any semblance of escape, an echo of Ruby in the background all blocked out by sparks igniting off of Yang's hair and dancing around both of them. Yang took a deep breath, and finally spoke in a cryptic tone that rattled the room.

"At least it's with someone I trust, but you hurt her or force her in any way, Neo will be the last of our worries. The pain she can bring you will be heaven compared to what I do to you. I won't kill you, oh no, but you will wish I had." Alex mustered up his courage, and dragged Blake into it as well, much to her irritation, and once they were on either side of Yang, coaxed her away from Weiss, who looked like she was on the verge of tears. Ruby had finished her laugh and jumped down from her bunk and went to hold Weiss while she spoke.

"Weiss would never pressure me into anything. What we've done we both agreed to and is our business, now no more threatening teammates." Ruby leveled a firm glare on her sister who looked like she would argue, but instead let it go, content to nuzzle into her girlfriends hair as she held her close. Alex went back to his bed and laid down, thoroughly tired from their new antics.

"Don't worry though, all jokes aside, I'll know its her." Alex said confidently, and shortly after he was snoring away. The others went to bed as well, Ruby choosing to stay next to Weiss for the night. Even with their new revelation, normally she'd be up all night planning, but something about how calm they all were was enough for her to relax, and sleep claimed her too.

All that left Weiss, snuggled up close to her partner turned girlfriend, but one still terrified eye staring at the blonde mane across the room from them, until exhaustion took her too.

The next morning, Alex awoke to the calm snoring of his teammates, all still paired up and in dream land. Alex blinked away the sleep from his eyes, feeling relaxed and refreshed as a brisk breeze blew in from the slightly open window. Alex was thankful for the extended winter break from studies, the last thing he wanted to do was get out of his warm cocoon of a bed. He decided to look around the room again to make sure everything was in order.

In the corner was his and Ruby's weapons, resting in the corner waiting for their daily maintenance. The wall was lined with their desks and books, homework half finished, and the coat rack empty.

Wait, empty? Alex remembered putting his jacket there when Ruby and him made it home finally. He shot up out of his bed, panic starting ot set in as much as frustration. He couldn't lose that jacket, it was the last gift he had from his parents since the fall. He was pacing around his room, until he finally saw it in a heap at the end of Yang and Blake's bed, Zwei sleeping soundly on it, his little leg twitching as he slept.

"Sorry Zwei, not a pillow." Alex said, lifting the dreaming pup and placed him down next to Ruby, who immediately started snuggling the now even more content pup in her dreams, a small happy smile playing across her face. He went back to his jacket and lifted it, feeling it's familiar weight off by a very small margin. He gave it a quick swing, shaking out Zwei toys and dog fur, but it still felt off.

He checked his pockets, feeling the familiar dust shells and knick knacks, but hidden away in a sleeve, was a scroll. Alex's scroll was sitting on the table next to his bed, and he had no idea whose this was. Pressing the home button on it, the screen came to life, and the only icon on it was a video icon with the title: 'play me'. Alex tapped on it and held the phone horizontally, extending the video's frame as it started to play.

The video was shaky as a gloved hand toyed with the lock to their dorm room, which he made a mental note to check later. How the sound did not wake him, he'd never know. The hand quickly finished the lock and the video ducked into the room, seeing him and all the girls in their familiar positions around the room, similar to how they are now. The video scanned the room, and landed on Ruby and Weiss, creeping forward with silent steps much too quiet to be picked up by the scroll. As the video closed in on Ruby's face, the video cut out, and the scroll died, sparks coming from it's back as the battery shorted out. Throwing the useless scroll aside, he looked over at Ruby, and quickly walked over to her to make sure she was really okay.

As soon as he was over Ruby, that smell hit him, the smell of ice cream. And blood. He sniffed for a short while, committing it to memory even if it did burn his nose, and continued scanning the bed for anything. On closer inspection, and partially buried by Zwei, was a small paper note, easily pushed down the front of Ruby's shirt, and Alex cursed under his breath. He wasn't about to get caught in that kinda situation with how his luck hated him. Thinking of a better option, he opted for waking Weiss.

A quick shake, and sapphire eyes awoke full of sleep and wrath, but before she could lecture him, he placed a hand over her mouth and fixed on her with his most serious eyes, silently telling her to focus up. She nodded, and shook her hand as to say 'what do you want?'. Alex pointed down to Ruby, not trying to get too close to her chest.

"I need it." Alex said as quietly as he could, his voice coming out as a growl at this point. Weiss sighed and pushed her hand right in and produced the note, only for said hand to get grabbed by a half asleep Ruby, who rolled over to stare into Weiss' eyes.

"I thought we agreed not to wake each other up for that." Ruby said in a daze. Before Weiss' arm was draped back over Ruby, Alex took the chance to snatch the note out of her grip. Weiss was not in a sleeping mood anymore though, and from her cuddle prison stared at Alex waiting for answers.

Alex unfurled the note, and his nose went to work out of his control. It was that smell again, the ice cream, the blood, all over the note. It burned, but he just couldn't stop.

"Alex, what are you doing?!" Weiss whisper yelled, pulling Alex out of his trance.

"Was documenting that smell…" Alex said, then started examining the note with his eyes, not his nose, and the contents did nothing to help him relax. The contents of the note, written sporadically, ink bleeding down the paper were four cryptic words.

 _I was this close._

All of a sudden, he felt the most exposed than he ever had, and Weiss was still waiting for an answer from him. For the first time in a long while, he paused, and just stared at her, his mouth refusing to move.

Yang was not going to be happy.

The next day, this proved true to an extreme extent. Yang was filled in on what happened, and without a word left the dorm room only to tear through the school hoping that Neo was still nearby.

While she was out, Ruby retreated into Weiss' bed even more, only snapping out of a daze when Weiss took her into her arms and whispered kind words to make her feel more secure. While they were talking, Alex and Blake were looking over the note, looking for anything to help give them any type of hint, from the type of paper to the very ink itself. Nothing came from it, but it was better than sitting around.

"How did nobody notice her?" Blake said, flipping the note over in her hand, furrowed brow looking down in disgust at the threatening note.

"I thought I'd pick up something, but I didn't even wake up." Alex replied, that feeling of vulnerability setting in even more. He could've swore he'd smell her out, but that wasn't the case. This girl was able to infiltrate Beacon, their home, their dorm and get close to Ruby with the whole team in the room, and leave a note next to two huntresses in training. This was a whole other level from what he's faced before. At this point, Alex would rather fight the White Fang again.

Before long, the door to the dorm slammed open and shut, splintered drywall around the frame and a still fuming Yang pacing in front of the freshly slammed shut door, sparks coming off her hair in large amounts, and her eyes a deep blood crimson. Blake practically dragged her back to the bunk and assumed the same task that Weiss was doing with Ruby, albeit more uncomfortable as she wasn't that accustomed to it, but she was doing her best.

"We could bring it up to Ozpin." Alex said.

"And what? Have the whole school on lockdown and high alert? That'll just make it worse for others." Yang said from the crook of Blake's neck, a headache setting in fresh as her rage ebbed and faded under Blake's care.

"Then what? Bunker down in this dorm? I'm not hearing any other ideas?" Alex snapped back, making Yang bring her head up and fix him with a stare that under other circumstances if he was thinking clearly, would have him apologizing for overstepping, but not this morning.

"Not like this." A small voice coming from Ruby sounded through the tense air. Alex and Yang broke their stare down to look at their leader, registering the bags under her eyes but the confidence shining through silver.

"She will not win by turning us on each other. We're a team, and we. Will. Win." Ruby said, gaining her confidence and energy as she stood up from the bunk, Weiss in tow, and looked at her whole team. Alex took a deep breath and nodded to their leader in understanding.

"I'm sorry Yang, I let it get to me." Alex said.

"Me too, we'll get her. She can't beat us." Yang said, borrowing her little sister's confidence, and holding Blake to her a bit tighter, but her cocky grin on full display. Even Blake gave a nod and a small smirk. Suddenly, a loud rumble shook the room, pictures rattled on their nails and the curtains almost falling from their home at the small window, and Yang's bunk threatened to fall from it's perch over Blake's bed. They all looked around wondering where the new threat was coming from, Alex's weapon already in hand as he scanned the room.

Ruby rubbed the back of her neck with a small shy chuckle.

"Breakfast first." Was all she said, and all the girls broke into laughter at the sudden change, Weiss dropping modesty to laugh fully.

One thought stayed with Ruby as they all shared in their merriment, they will not be beaten.


	22. Chapter 21 - One down

The classes that normally drone on went by at a snail's pace accompanied by the muffled sound of the teachers as they led their lessons. The team sat in their normal seats, but their eyes were on anything but the work, looking into any odd movements from fellow students, any entrances that were used out of the ordinary, even the teacher's mannerisms fell under heavy scrutiny.

When the bell finally sounded an eternity later, they filed out as a group with grim expressions on their faces, constantly ready for a fight. The halls all became openings for Neo, the people that normally would talk them up were potential enemies and were avoided, even when Team JNPR finally came around, their conversations were short and one sided.

When they were in the relative safety of the dorm room, they all let out a sigh of relief as the tension of the day washed off of them into the ether. Weiss laid out on her bunk still wearing her uniform, and Ruby just flopped down next to her. Blake laid back in her bunk and pulled out a book, but the twitching of her ears says she wasn't focused on that. Yang stayed standing as she paced around the room, back and forth threatening to wear a hole through the floor, and Alex was sitting at one of their work desks, but wasn't doing any homework.

Silence fell over the group as they did their best to unwind, all failing miserably. Finally, the stir crazy feeling set in too much as they all met in the center of the room, literally jumping from what they were doing.

"Alright, this is crazy! We have to do something!" Weiss said, Ruby nodding her head next to her. Alex looked to his right to see the Bumblebee pair thinking amongst themselves for a second.

"What do we know about her?" Blake said.

"She's mute, and able to mask the sound and smell of anything she does." Alex contributed, earning a nod from Blake.

"She's a great fighter." Yang said, although the grudge was still obvious in her tone.

"She's a master of disguise." Ruby said, wishing she was just exaggerating.

"She's short." Weiss said, attempting to break the tension, and for a second it worked as even Blake was chuckling.

"So how do we lure her out? Deal with her on our terms?" Yang said.

Blake thought to herself for a second, walking away from the impromptu huddle as she pondered away. Ruby followed her, trying to be ready for any thoughts that Blake might have. They disappeared into their discussion as Alex was distracted with his own thoughts. Ever since their message left by Neo, he's been even more on edge. He had left his jacket hung up in the corner ever since finding the message, not feeling safe even in it's armored embrace. Not just that, though, it felt wrong to wear it, like the object had become foreign, and any attempts were met with it just being uncomfortable, like it didn't fit right.

He only noticed he was staring at it when Ruby tapped him on the shoulder and got real close to his face, almost filling his vision with large silver eyes.

"What about you? Any ideas on how we can get to her?" Ruby said, and Alex frantically searched his brain for any semblance of something to make him useful, running through hypothetical plans left and right in an instant. He had to say something, anything at this point, they were counting on him!

"Nope." _Dammit._

Ruby wilted after his admittance and went back to the rest of the group, none of them of much better hope than him. He finally noticed that their huddle finally included him again after everyone split off for a second, but under this situation it was just depressing that none of them had any ideas.

"I think we should go to a club tonight." Yang said suddenly, completely straight faced and serious, even Ruby was wondering if she was joking.

"What?" Ruby said, and her sister jumped to life,grabbing her outfit and bracelets and dashing into the bathroom, leaving behind a very confused team. They all looked to each other, all differing forms of disbelief before silently agreeing to Yangs plan.

Later that night, the shattered moon casting it's light over the seedier parts of Vale, lit up by neon lights and the occasional light shining through those who couldn't move further away from this district. They stood outside Junior's bar once again, being eyed by the bouncer, only to have him cower in fear when his eyes landed on the blonde brawler who was already walking towards the door.

The bouncer in charge backed away with every step she took as she confidently strode into the club like she owned the place. And the crowd of guards that were waiting on the other side of the door parted like a sea of black suits in her wake, all watching on in horror to the sheer destruction she could bring them. Alex found it beautiful.

They cut through the nervous crowd with ease, finding their way at the bar, noting that the thumping music was no longer playing, and a spotlight shown on the blonde as she strutted up to the bar and ordered her normal strawberry sunrise, no ice. And it was given not ten seconds later by a very terrified bartender.

"So, now what?" Alex said, keeping his eyes on the heavily armed crowd growing behind them. Yang chuckled as she gulped down her apparently free drink, the warmth of the liquor settling in her stomach as she savored the sweet taste of her sinful drink. Ruby and Weiss stuck near her, hands on their weapons just in case, and Blake was sat at the bar next to Yang, sipping on tea that seemed to just appear without anyone noticing. Alex wasn't even sure if this place served tea, but by the gods they found some for Yang's plus one.

"We wait, eventually a very angry Junior will come out, and we get answers." Yang said, her confident grin coming out again, and Alex knew they were in for a rough ride, even Ruby looked uneasy about what her sister would do for information. Weiss thought that their last visit was bad enough for the poor guy, but apparently Yang wasn't done with him. Not by a long shot.

As if on cue, Junior cut through his crowd of guards and sat on the opposite side of Yang, away from Blake and ordered his own drink: straight whiskey.

"What are you doing here, Blondie?" Junior grunted, anger barely held back by familiar pains.

"Aw, Junior, my man! Just here for some information and we'll be on our way." Yang said, back to the bar and her award winning smile focused on Junior.

"I don't know anything." Junior sighed, pulling off his sunglasses (which he wore in a nightclub?) and rubbed the bit of flesh between his eyes. Everyone knew how this would play out, but they still enjoyed their song and dance. Until something caught Junior's eye.

"Got a new arm, Blondie? How'd you swing that piece of hardware?" He said, focusing his tired eyes on her new arm. Yang held it out in front of them and flexed her new fingers, a caring smile on her face.

"A friend helped me out without me knowing I needed it. Now, I know you have information I need. Can we just get to it without me having to wreck the place? I'm sure it's getting expensive at this point." Yang replied, placing her arm on the bar and regarding him full on. Junior glared at her for a second until his resolve, or his wallet, made him cave in.

"What do you want to know?" Was all he said, and he and Yang fell into conversation. Ruby and Weiss calmed down, but didn't move too far from the blonde, choosing instead a nearby booth to cuddle up into and steadily glare into the crowd, daring anyone to make a move. Alex took the seat next to Blake and was surprised to find a glass of some kind of liquor sitting in front of him already, and a bartender eyeing him carefully.

"What is this?" Alex said, pointing to the glass in question.

"Rum and coke." Was all the man said, standing rigid straight when Alex spoke.

"How much are you expecting?" Alex sighed, not really planning on spending lien today.

"It's on the house since you're here with...her." A glare was leveled on Yang behind her back, thankfully she didn't notice.

"Thanks, but I'll pass. You drink it." Alex pushed the glass full of liquid distraction back to it's source. The bartender showed a small smile as he greedily grabbed the glass and downed it all in one go. A nod later, and the bartender was back to the huddled duo, ready for any orders they would have.

Looking over, Alex caught Blake staring into her glass and not saying a word, face blank as she was lost in thought.

"What's with you?" Alex asked, and Blake snapped back to reality. She looked about ready to give a cookie-cutter excuse, but in present company, she decided against and relaxed a bit.

"The past couple of days have been rough, on all of us. Being on high alert is harder on me, and probably you too." Blake said. Alex looked at her speaking a silent question, and in response she shook her cat ears under their bow, and Alex caught on.

"Yeah, they're counting on us to catch anything, but it is exhausting." Alex conceded. He had been acutely aware of any smells in the area, so much so that he's only been smelling for any dangerous scent, he hasn't been able to appreciate food, or even the unique perfumes his team wears that help make them who they are.

"I have a question." Blake said, looking at him with cautious amber eyes.

"Shoot."

"Why haven't you been wearing your jacket?" She said, and Alex sighed. He didn't really think about it but…

"It feels wrong. Since I found that note, it didn't feel like my jacket. It became uncomfortable and stifling, so I just don't." And it was the truth, if he wanted it to make sense, he'd say it was about four sizes too small and he didn't know why. It looked just like it had always done and everything was right where it was supposed to be, but it felt wrong to wear it. Almost like a target.

Blake just shrugged off his answer and returned to her tea, still steaming and seemingly too sweet for her tastes. Alex let the conversation die there as he scanned the crowd, now dispersing back to the dance floor and other booths. More often than not he'd glance over to see Yang grilling Junior for withholding information, even if it was obvious he'd wind up sharing with her anyway.

Weiss and Ruby were almost out of view, but the scoldings of a very flustered Weiss could be heard above the crowd, probably due to Ruby ordering diabetes in a cup, or for flirting in public. Hard to tell.

Then all froze for a moment, the dancing slowed to a halt mid step, the music seemed far away to be a faint echo, and Alex's eyes narrowed to borderline tunnel vision, yet Alex could still move, and so he did.

He was staving off mild panic, wondering what was going on to his team while he was having this 'episode' for lack of a better term. Nothing around him stood out as the cause, and he did his best to avoid eating or drinking anything from this place. Looking at his team, they were stuck in normal poses as if everything didn't just turn on its head, and didn't move at all.

Ruby and Weiss were sitting in a booth actually not far from them, frozen in a chaste kiss that was entirely started by Ruby if you asked Weiss, and would be forever if he didn't find out what was going on.

Curiosity set in, and he tapped on Blake's shoulder, feeling fabric move, but the woman herself not budging an inch. How real it felt was completely jarring compared to the environment around him now. He became acutely aware of how distant the music sounded, how cold the air felt, how real Blake's jacket felt. Too real, but undeniably there, and feeling wrong at the same time. So imagine his surprise when he heard an almost silent pair of heels in the crowd behind him.

Turning around on his heel and drawing his sword from it's temporary spot on his hip, he pointed it into the crowd wherever he could hear those heels, tapping hard into the dance floor almost hard enough to damage it, but still somehow silent enough to strain even his hearing. Then, almost as soon as they came, they stopped, still in the crowd ahead of him, daring him to run in and get torn apart by the hidden threat. And he did.

Pushing around the heavily compacted dance floor, he was met with blinding light focused on the spots they were frozen at, the rest of the crowd was a macabre dark picture with hues of red and white tearing through the black crowd, almost invisible under the current lighting to normal eyes. On all sides of him were body after body, tightly compacted in their dance, other than the few he tore past that were only slid over a bit from their frozen pose. Alex turned around and around, looking for another moving body in the crowd and was having close to no luck.

"I think we should hit the club." Yang's voice echoed in his right ear, startling him as he thought that Yang was up and moving again, only to see the source at his feet, another scroll playing a birds eye view from the outside of their room. Even with the curtain pulled, Yang's voice was easily heard as the window had been open behind it. Alex let out a roar of anger as he brought his boot down on the device, ending it's probably short existence, but the message was delivered. _I see you._

Alex didn't know what to do, he was feeling cornered, isolated, and fear was started to wear on his resolve a bit. He had been foolish to take the bait, and venture into the crowd, but he was here now and had to deal with it. He couldn't risk just torching the dance floor just in case the crowd was still okay and he was just losing it again, and he couldn't focus enough to weave his fire into the small cracks between frozen dancing bodies. Even in such close quarters, his sword might not be effective either without hurting innocents.

As he went to put it back on his hip, his body was wracked with a sudden pain coming from his stomach. His eyes watered, and his arms and legs felt weak, almost rubbery taking all his will to keep standing. He eyes, fear finally giving way to panic looked his body over for the cause, only to see a thin silver blade sticking out of his stomach, coated in his own blood as it tore through his aura and body like butter. As soon as it had been seen, the blade disappeared out of him, and he collapsed to the ground, body useless and blood flowing freely to the dance floor and seeping under the other patrons shoes, leaving the beginnings of bloody footprints.

Before his eyes went black, and the sleepy feeling about to claim him, a small figure walked into view, a woman. Her hair a complete mess was dyed pink and brown parting down the middle, but the hair looked like it hasn't been cared for in months, a white jacket over a musty blood stained outfit that once looked expensive, but now housed a maniac. As she leaned in with her mismatched eyes and twisted grin, laughing silently at him with sunken eyes shining out a with possessed colors, sharp pink and deep dark brown, slowly moving away from him as she stood and darkness creeped on his vision, he remembered two things:

He was legitimately afraid of this person.

Bitch had his jacket on.

And with that, Alex slipped away…

Meanwhile, things weren't normal for Team RWBY either. From Blake's point of view, things were really strange. She felt Alex poke her in the shoulder, and when she turned towards him, he darted off into the crowd. At first she thought it was just Alex being weird, but that's where things got weirder for her. When Alex disappeared into the crowd, there were a few tense moments where she hoped he would come back, but instead the crowd stopped moving for all of a second before bright pink cracks formed in all their bodies. As soon as the cracks had moved all over their forms, their bodies shattered like glass that faded as soon as it hit the floor.

Before anyone can react, all their eyes locked on an entirely empty dance floor, Junior gulped as a nervous bead of sweat ran down the side of his head, Yang fixed a glare on the dance floor and Blake was flanked by Ruby and Weiss. On the dance floor was a crumpled heap of what they thought was Alex, leaking blood onto the dance floor and he wasn't moving. Walking away from the body was a woman, the very one that ruby was afraid of, a bloody parasal with it's blade still extended a bathed crimson with Alex's blood still on it, dripping to the floor; and wearing his jacket even though it was about a head and shoulders too big for her, sleeves extending well past her hands.

"Neo." Ruby said, growling under her breath, and with that Team RWBY grabbed their weapons, ready to fight to the death if they needed to.


	23. Chapter 22 - Recovery

Of all the places Alex thought he'd be, on the floor of Junior's club watching his team fight for their lives wasn't even on the list. Neo had snuck up on him in the middle of an illusionary crowd and had dragged him out of the fight at the tip of a very sharp, and to him very painful blade. The lights of the dance floor shown in red hues as his life's essence slowly drained from his stab wound through his gut, swearing under his breath whenever he would try to move and rack his body with more pain.

Looking through his haze, he noticed how his team was barely hanging in there. He watched as Yang tried duking it out with the assassin, only to be knocked off balance and thrown to the side like some small toy. Blake would fill in the gap, her sword seeming to fade in and out of existence as it struck out against Neo, however; all strikes were dodged, even when Blake would use her semblance to mask her movements, everything failed to find it's mark.

With a twist of her wrist, Neo brought her weapon against Blake's, sending it flying away into a nearby booth and well out of the fight, but Blake wasn't anywhere near done, punching and kicking with practiced finesse at the ice cream colored assassin, pushing her back with a combat prowess that rivaled Yang's not just in technique but in intensity. Neo's cool expression dropped for just a second at the intensity of her prey, but only for a second.

Neo leapt away from Blake, and when she landed, she immediately pushed back into Blake, driving her other heel into Blake's core, knocking the wind out of her and pushing her away by yards, lying crumpled on the floor clutching at her stomach as she gasped for breath.

Ruby jumped in shortly after her partner fell, Crescent Rose already out and ready to strike, and with a fire of her weapon, she was on Neo in a red flurry of rage, shots ringing out in tandem with each vicious strike against Neo, all deflected away with an open parasol and a smile, each fueling Ruby's aggression even more. Before long, her strikes had no rhyme or reason, only an intent to get past her defence.

"Ruby!" Weiss said, trying to find an opening between the two to get Ruby away. She watched on with obvious worry as she saw the tide of the fight change as Ruby got more and more tired, and her moves becoming more and more sluggish. Before Neo could counter, Weiss stepped in with her weapon aimed for Neo's neck, only finding shattered glass as her illusion took the hit, the momentum driving Weiss forward and into Ruby, knocking them both over as Neo rematerialized right before them, that demented grin showing as she kicked them both away effortlessly.

Alex felt his eyes rolling into the back of his head as darkness crept over his vision again, barely clinging to consciousness as a warm feeling started to fill his core. His arms became even more heavy, and the ground had never been this comfortable before, he could just sleep right where he was without a care in the world. And with that his eyes drifted closed.

Ruby and Weiss scrambled to their feet, frantically bringing their weapons up as Neo closed in. Yang and Blake had recovered enough to join them, weapons ready, but knees shaking from the fight's toll.

"Any ideas Ruby?" Weiss said, holding out Myrtenaster as far as her arms could, but only succeeding in holding it shakily at the ready and was unsure if she'd be able to strike back. The fall from earlier left a sharp pain in her right shoulder that made holding her faithful weapon an extra chore.

"Open to suggestions." Ruby said, breath heavy and Crescent Rose her only support from falling over and regretting building her so heavy.

Yang pulled herself to her full height, blonde locks emanating sparks and her eyes a deep red, glancing every which way to try and find something to get their advantage, anything to slow this demon down. Blake held Gambol Shroud ahead of her, subconsciously praying that the assassin could show some sign of slowing down. As it stood now, Neo was toying with them, and enjoying it all the same.

Neo was closing distance with every step of her heeled foot, dragging her blade across the floor as she went as her demented smile never faded and not a sign of slowing down. With a kick of her foot, she was on Team Ruby again, ready or not.

Meanwhile, Alex's eyes snapped open to see Neo descend on the group, swinging her blade wildly, scattering the group and focusing on Ruby. He watched as she held her weapon up and deflected, barely keeping her ground as the blade connected roughly with Crescent Rose, deep gashes riddling the chassis. Summoning what strength he could find, he attempted to stand. It felt like he was lifting a lead weight on his shoulders, but somehow he got up, shakily standing on legs that were about to give up but he was up nonetheless.

Limping along, holding the blood in his gut in, he limped into the fight not knowing what he was aiming for.

Ruby gained enough room on Neo to deliver a counter attack, only to meet the bladed parasol and send Neo back a bit, right into a somewhat sturdy surface. Large arms closed around Neo as surprise and irritation set in on her face, and Alex held firm as she kicked at his legs and silently screamed her death threats.

"What are you waiting for?" Alex growled, his voice failing him as he looked at his team and feeling his grip failing him.

"We'll hit you." Ruby said feebly.

"That won't matter if I can't hold her!" Alex said, lifting Neo a bit to cut down on the thrashing.

Blake and Yang picked up on what he was saying, and Blake readied her pistol, leveling it on Neo's core, causing the small assassin to thrash even more. A heartbeat later and a silent cry from Ruby, the dust infused bullet left Blake's gun and travelled the short distance through Neo and Alex, exiting out the other side of him as he fell back, holding the shocked Neo in his arms all the way to the ground.

The last thing he saw was Neo's movements slowing to a halt, and darkness blocking his view of the team rushing to his side.

During the chaos, Junior had been the one to call the police, and when huntresses in training were involved, Ozpin got involved, summoning a small force of his other students led by the teachers, they descended on the club, albeit way too late, the fight being long over and Blake hurriedly applying first aid to Alex, struggling to keep him hanging on.

First aid units took over for her, treating Alex as they carted him away to a waiting airship that somehow landed nearby despite the busy streets. Team RWBY sat huddled together, watching him disappear outside the club.

Blake sat in a heap, hugging her knees and not responding to anyone, not even Yang's touch brought her out of her haze. She was replaying it over and over in her head, watching her dust infused bullet pass through Neo and Alex as if they were butter, his blood exploding out behind him as pain racked his features, as they fell in slow motion into a mound of limbs and fresh blood, Neo's movements slowing to a halt as pure anger remained etched into her features forevermore.

Ruby wasn't faring much better, having tried to defuse the situation and having it blow up in her face, watching her teammate, and above all another friend probably give their life in front of her was almost too much for her. Weiss was speechless over everything. Part of her blamed Blake for taking the shot, but the other part knew there was no other obvious choice, but she couldn't help herself from being angry about it, and thus kept Blake at arms length.

Yang couldn't sit still, having followed the medics out of the building and giving quick responses to the police about what happened trying to get back to her team, outright pushing a group of them out of her way and slipping back past the sturdy bar doors.

"Ruby?" She said, approaching the trembling little girl, who was looking even smaller as she mentally berated herself over and over. No response came from her sister, even when her hand found her shoulder, Ruby just melted into the touch a little bit as sniffles came from under her hood she had pulled over her head to hide her tears. Yang knelt down next to her and spoke softly to her.

"He's tough, the medics said he should be fine after they operate to close the wound. His aura was already doing most of the work." Her smile hung loose from her face, not believing her own words even if they made sense.

"I should've stopped it." Was all Ruby could say, lifting her head to somewhat show a red streaked face with bloodshot silver eyes, looking to Yang and begging her silently to reverse this whole night, to bring Alex back safe and sound.

"There was nothing you could do." Weiss said finally, walking up to Ruby and kneeling on her opposite side from Yang. Ruby looked over to her girlfriend with the same deep hurt look before lowering her head again, but this time finding herself in her partners warm arms, her sister holding onto her as well as the dam broke, and Ruby cried.

Blake heard it all and knew she should be there too, but how could she since she's the one to take the shot? She wouldn't be surprised if she was off the team at this point.

They sat in their individual huddles for what felt like forever, not knowing what their next move would be, until Ozpin himself walked up to them, without his mug and seemingly ignoring his limp. Not without effort, he knelt down in front of Ruby.

"The police will be roping off this area soon, Alex is being taken back to Beacon for treatment, You're welcome to come along as well." He said in a soft voice that still commanded obedience, but he himself was very familiar with the pain of potentially losing a teammate. Even with the optimism of the medic's, he didn't know if Alex would wake up from his wounds, much less be fit for being a huntsman.

"Can we see him when we get back?" Ruby's voice pierced her hood. Yang looked to the headmaster looking for something positive to give to Ruby.

"Of course. He may still be under when you get there, but you can at least lay eyes on him." Ozpin said, he then stood and said his goodbyes to his students and walked out of the club. Yang helped Ruby to her feet, and Weiss practically dragged Blake to her feet.

"Wha-?" Blake's question was cut off by a swift finger flick to her nose, which make her squeak from surprise and hold her now throbbing tip of the nose.

"We know you had no choice, Blake. But, as his teammates, we owe it to him to see him together." Weiss said as calmly as she could, irritation breaking into her professionally firm tone. She then took Blake by the hand and pulled her towards Yang and Ruby, who had already been walking out.

 _2 hours later_

The beeping metronome of the heart monitor was the only comfort the girls had in the sterile white room. Alex was laid up on the gurney, bandages and gauze covering his two torso wounds that looked like they'd need changing soon, multiple different IV's led into different parts of both his arms, and he was hooked to a respirator that seemed to be working fine for as much as they knew.

Ruby was sitting near his head on his right, the beeping of the heart rate monitor in her head and matching her heart beat, Yang next to her as well fast asleep from admittedly being so bored as well as the fight taking so much out of her. Weiss was across from Ruby, barely keeping awake herself more for Ruby's sake, and Blake had given in long before and laid her head near his leg and was purring away in her sleep.

It took some doing from the Schnee, but she had convinced the doctor's to let them keep their weapons in the room, even Alex's which was now laying against the wall in the far corner, the carefully crafted floral patterns that Ruby had spent time etching herself seemed flat in this setting.

Ruby stared deeply at Alex, willing him to wake up without touching him. Even if the doctor's said he'd be awake within a few hours, she wanted to hear him now, to feel his warmth when he made a playful ball of fire and let her fangirl about him not needing dust to make fire, hearing her combat tactics using this. Now the room felt colder than the outside ever was.

The minutes passed by slowly with the hum of the overhead lights being the only cure for the ringing in her ears. Looking up she was greeted with bright blue eyes looking kindly to her, a smile joining them on the heiress' face. Ruby tried to return it, but the smile felt fake right now and decided against it. Weiss then reached across the bed towards Ruby, grabbing a clammy hand that was still sore from using Crescent Rose in such a fury just a couple hours ago.

"You do know he'll be okay, right?" Weiss asked quietly, not trying to wake Alex.

"No. What if he doesn't wake up? What if his aura didn't heal right? What if-?" Ruby started, questions becoming louder and louder until Weiss hushed her with a small hand before anyone had to be forced awake.

"I know he'll be fine because he promised never to do anything to hurt the team. And this would hurt, a lot. And I don't see him as breaking his promises." Weiss said, her smile turning cocky as she spoke, actually certain of her words. Ruby was silent for a second, staring back to Alex and processing what she said before nodding in agreement. It was a bit naive but it was the only hope they had.

And Alex would continue to lay there, hours passing slowly as his team took turns going back to the dorm to rest on their own, having to force Ruby and Blake but making them relax all the same. His condition never worsened, but he wasn't waking up on time like the doctor said.

Ruby sat in the same chair she had been since they first arrived and her eyes never left Alex, even when Weiss would try and distract her. Small trembling hands laid in her lap curled into tense fists as she counted the seconds that he kept his eyes closed. She watched as his aura worked it's best to close the wound around his stitches, praying everything healed as it should've.

Finally, on the third day, when the sun was peeking through the windows and painting the room with a bright orange glow that hid the eggshell white of the walls, Alex stirred. At first it was just his head moving, going unnoticed by his silent guard Ruby, then his arms moved to wipe the sleep from his eyes. Ruby's eyes went large as she watched him sit up like he was just taking a nap, watched as realization dawned on him and he felt his core, running sore and stiff hands over the bandage.

He looked around the room, eyes landing on Ruby as she still had yet to come to earth, thinking she was just dreaming him waking up again.

"Ruby?" He said with a voice strained from not having used it, and Ruby snapped out of it. Before Alex could catch her, Ruby had him in a fierce hold that still somehow minded his bandages, but still held fast thinking he'd vanish again. Alex tried to push her off of him, but decided against it when he heard quiet thank you's from the crook of his neck and felt warm tears seeping into his shirt.

A few minutes passed before Alex had to break up the moment.

"Where is everyone? Are they alright?" Alex said, now looking Ruby in the eyes.

"Yeah, we're all fine." Ruby said with a goofy grin at how sudden it was. "You should really start worrying about yourself more. That was a really risky move."

Alex chuckled, and then regretted it when his core flared with pain.

"The others should be at the dorm room right now, they wouldn't come and try to switch out with me for another hour. Should we go surprise them?" Ruby said with a devious look in her eye not unlike Yang's.

"Heh, sure." Alex said, rising out of the hospital bed.

A lengthy discharge process later and they were on the path back to the dorm. Alex was thankful that the weather decided today to warm up a bit, the cold would've made recovery so much more painful. The grass glistened from the melted snow, and the breeze was cool and relaxing instead of biting. He did wish he had his jacket though, not knowing what they did with it.

The dorm building came into view, glass double doors leading into a warmed interior with a fire going in the nearby fireplace helping the atmosphere to feel more like home. The walk up the stairs was a bit tough, but Ruby refused to let him do anything alone, so this tiny girl helped the large wolf faunus up stairs, hurting his pride only, thankfully. A few flights later and a small stroll down the hall had them in front of their dorm room, banter heard on the other side.

Ruby stopped him for a second, shushing him with a finger to her lips and pushing him out of the doorway, and Alex played along wanting to see what she had in mind.

She opened the door with a somber look on her face and walked in, leaving the door open. Yang was the first to her feet, walking up to Ruby and giving her as big a hug as she could.

"How is he?" Alex heard Blake say, her voice still small as if expecting bad news. Ruby took a deep breath, letting it out with a shudder (when did she become such a good actor.).

"No changes, it's your turn Blake, I need some rest." Ruby said, walking over to her bunk and climbing into it He heard Blake's bunk creak as she climbed out, and practiced heeled steps approach the door. Blake exited and pulled the door behind her, not paying attention to her surroundings and started walking away from Alex, and he had a fun idea of his own.

"I said 'hi' Blake. Gonna ignore me now?" Alex said, knowing he didn't say hi, but wanted to see how she'd react.

"Oh, sorry. Hi Alex, i'm on my way to…" Alex could feel the seconds pass as she realized who was talking to her. Amber eyes went from sad and dark to alive and shocked, tears threatening to mess up her winged eyeliner that seemed to frame her eyes perfectly.

"Alex?!" She practically shouted, and Ruby's laughter could be heard through their dorm room door.

"Do I get a hug now?" He asked, sounding extra cheeky as he prepared his bandaged core to take another hit.

"Of course!" Blake said through a chuckle and she started to approach him, only to have the dorm room door practically explode open with Yang standing in the door, face already drenched with tears.

"Sup Yang." Was all that Alex was able to say before he was lifted in the air, ribs compressing as blonde hair filled his vision, one of possibly the most painful hugs he'd ever gotten, stab and gunshot wounds not withstanding, and Ruby's innocent laughter echoing from the dorm room did nothing to help his mood. What must have been an eternity later, Yang put him down gently, apologizing for potentially putting him back in the hospital.

Alex's feet met hardwood floor and the cool wind hit his collapsed lungs, granting him life again. His eyes went over the blonde's head to Blake sitting patiently, waiting for her turn with a small smile and blush dusting her cheeks. Alex smiled to her and started walking over, only to have himself stopped by a girl half his size fixing him with a determined glare up to him.

"You made us a promise, that you wouldn't hurt the team." She said, her glare staring deep into his soul. She then jabbed her finger in his face and continued. "You're actions almost caused that, and you better make it up to us. Please, don't do it again." She finished, her glare giving way to partial tears that she attempted to hide. Alex could tell where this was going and let out a huff, only to pick up the small ball of anger in his own version of Yang's hug, not being bothered by her thrashing and kicking (even if it hurt quite a bit, people keep forgetting that he'd been shot and stabbed apparently.). When Weiss finally accepted her fate and stopped kicking, she returned the hug briefly before demanding she be put back on the ground.

Now that that was out of the way, and Weiss was adequately silenced as she tried to will her blush down, once again Alex's eyes landed on a certain dark haired Faunus, still waiting her turn but laughing at their antics all the same. Alex looked around to make sure everyone was well satisfied, before walking up to her again. This time she was just a foot or so away, a small smile on her face as she looked up at him, her cat ears folding back against her head. She closed the distance herself and brought him in for a delicate hug, trying to avoid his wounds unlike most of her team, and he enjoyed the feeling of bringing his arms around her as well.

A few calm moments went by before they broke the hug, smiles on their faces again as they were flanked by their teams, all patting Alex on the shoulder or, in Weiss' case, scolding him for not thinking the situation through more clearly. Ruby was still in the dorm room, working on cleaning and maintaining not only Crescent Rose, but Rose Bolero as well. It hadn't seen much of the fight at all, but she wanted it in working order when Alex was cleared for combat again, and didn't want to trouble him with doing it considering his injuries.

The team helped Alex into the dorm room, even though he kept complaining that he could walk on his own, and continued to fuss until he was laying down in his bunk. He welcomed the soft sheets and sunken mattress well above the firm and starchy hospital bed.

To his left, Yang and Blake went back to what was normal to him: Blake trying to read, but Yang trying her best to distract her, not caring whether or not she succeeded, and to his right Weiss was buried in one of her books while completely ignoring Ruby who was still working on their weapons. Eventually, darkness overcame his vision as he became acutely aware of how comfortable his bed was and he drifted off to sleep.

Silence filled his ears for all of a second before he snapped awake, the familiar walls of his dorm room calming his racing heart, but he still felt he was being watched. The curtain was drawn shut and the other members of his team were asleep in their bunks around his, Yang's quiet snores cutting through his haze as he acclimated to the waking world again. A quick glance to his alarm clock showed it was a quarter past four in the morning, and he groaned at having slept all the previous day and somewhat into this one.

A light under the dorm room door caught his attention, as most people would still be asleep at this point, and curiosity got the better of him. He grabbed Rose Bolero, and when he was outside the room, and hopefully out of earshot, he changed it to it's scythe form to use as a walking stick until his legs woke up with the rest of him.

Quiet humming in a sweet voice was coming from further down the hall in the kitchen area, and the first thought he had was that he wanted breakfast as well. The loud grumble in his stomach seemed to only punctuate his thoughts as he limped closer to the light and humming.

A sharp swear in a hushed voice was closely followed by the clatter of dishes hitting the sink. Rounding the corner Alex saw Ruby, still in her pajamas but also covered in powder, working at the stove with a determined look in her eyes. The contents of the charred pan a mystery to him, but the ingredients on the counter implied either pancakes or waffles.

"What's on the menu?" Alex said, hushed but loud enough for her to hear him. She jumped slightly at the sudden company, and the pan landed back on the stove with an all too loud clang that seemed to echo down the hallway. Alex suppressed his laugh when her eyes slowly landed on him, looking like a deer caught in headlights.

She stammered for a second, eyes dancing from the pan, back to him, to the scythe, and back to the pan.

"I thought you'd be tired of hospital food and wanted to give you a proper breakfast, but I keep messing it up." Ruby rubbed the back of her head, complimented by the slight blush.

"Why not ask Ren? He's scary good at this stuff."

"He came down with a cold, so Nora's not letting him move. Like at all." She chuckled at the last part, picturing Ren tied to a bed with an ever vigilant Nora guarding him with her hammer.

"Alright, I'm no star chef, but I think I can walk you through this stuff." Alex commented, and Ruby seemed to perk up a bit. The kitchen, before long, was filled with the aroma of freshly made pancakes of all different sizes and shapes due to mishaps while pouring the batter. Some might not legally work as pancakes, and others were almost unidentifiable, but he wasn't about to tell her that.

They sat at a nearby table, plates full to capacity with their creations and syrup, and Alex started immediately digging in. Literally. He threw his head into the plate and let his fangs and claws do the work for him, forks were for wusses anyway. He only came to when Ruby couldn't contain her laughter anymore, pointing at the different pieces of breakfast stuck in his hair and on his face.

"Guess the big bad wolf was more hungry than he let on." She pointed her fork at him.

"Careful, or I'll bite you too." He said with more venom than he meant to, but she caught onto the joke and busied herself with her own meal.

"One thing though." Ruby said suddenly, catching Alex's attention.

"What?"

"Everyone in the team looks up to you to keep everyone safe and happy. You've become a big part of our lives lately, and we don't know what it'd be like without you. Please," Her silver eyes locked with his, sorrow evident even with the lack of tears.

"Please don't get yourself hurt again. We could've found a way out together without risking you, you could've found us if things went south rather than go out on your own. No more." She finished, more demanding than asking, and all Alex could do was nod his head.

"Now eat up, before Weiss comes out. I'm supposed to be cuddling her right now." She finished with a grin.

Even with this, Alex couldn't bring himself to explain why he really woke up, why he had his weapon other than as a crutch, not with her looking this content, but he knew that eventually whatever it was will come out, and they'll have to deal with the new threat. He only prayed that it was just his mind playing tricks on him.

Meanwhile outside of Beacon, at the front gate, there was a surprise visitor. A small girl wearing a wolf jacket, complete with ears and a tail, stood at the gate. She couldn't have been more than 9 years old, but her eyes were empty, her frown seemed cemented in place, and a torn and tattered teddy bear dangled loosely from her grip, stains from mud and blood covering it's matted fur as it looked like it's been from hell and back.

"No worries Ada, he's here. As well as my Darling." Said a man that walked up behind her, his long dark outfit flowing in the night, an ornate rose drawn onto the back of it. A mask hid his piercing yellow eyes full of hate and wrath, and cocky grin that sent out a constant challenge to anyone around him. Dull red hair fell down his face, past his exposed horns and framed his sharp features while also covering them in darkness.

"Let's go visit, shall we?" Adam said to Ada, and without a smile or sign of emotion, the girl nodded and grabbed his hand. As if becoming part of the shadows, they disappeared from where they stood. And walking away from the front gate with a sadistic smile on her face was just a lone woman. A woman with long emerald hair tied in messy pigtails.

 **To Be Continued**


End file.
